Marked: Part 1 of Impending Doom
by RavenShooter
Summary: What happens when the B.O decided to look for children to recruit into their ranks? What will happen to Conan when he caught their attention? 1st part of the three part series, Impending Doom. Last chapter and epilogue is up! Pls R&R!  FIN
1. Prologue

Impending Doom- PART 1

I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights go to Aoyama Gosho.

**PROLOGUE **

"_Aniki_, did you just receive the next assignment?" asked Vodka.

Gin pocketed his phone and nodded solemnly. His forehead creased in irritation and he pulled a cigarette from its pack. Lighting it up with his Porsche's lighter, he sucked in the addicting smoke of the cigarette. The boss had just gave their next assignment and Gin wasn't liking it one bit. How can he, an executive in the Organization, perform such a low-class assignment? It's a disgrace.

"So..." began Vodka, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. Gin was angry and Vodka was the nearest person to him right now. If he says or do something that provokes Gin even in the slightest way, Vodka would be sent to the underworld with a bullet through his brain. Not a pleasant way to die.

"So, _Aniki, _what's our new assignment?" asked Vodka tentatively.

Taking a deep breath to calm his raging nerves, Gin replied with a controlled voice, "We are going scouting."

"Scouting?" repeated Vodka, apparently not understanding what Gin meant.

"The Organization needs new members. We are running low on manpower. Boss wants us to find some young talents to recruit so we can train them earlier," explained Gin in an emotionless voice.

"Um... So where are we going to find the 'new talents'?" asked Vodka again.

Starting the Porsche's engine, Gin answered, "Teitan Elementary School."

**END**

Sorry, I know this chapter is very short... I will write longer for the next chapter. Pls read and review. :)


	2. Chapter 1 The Scholarship

**CHAPTER ONE – The Scholarship**

The morning bell rang, signalling the start of lessons in Teitan Elementary School. Teachers began to move to their respective classrooms and students in the classrooms ceased their noise-making and waited patiently for their teachers in their seats. It seemed like any normal school day but today was special. It was an important day for everyone in the school, students and teachers respectively.

In Class 1-B, Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were discussing the special event that would take place that day.

"I am so excited!" exclaimed Mitsuhiko, "A scholarship programme for the most famed school in Japan? This is a dream come true!"

"Um.." Genta asked, scratching his head in confusion, "What is this Japan International School? I never heard of it."

"Honestly Genta?" sighed Mitsuhiko, "It is the best school in Japan! All the students are gifted and to get into the school is really hard!"

"Yeah!" Ayumi said. "You need to go through a series of examinations and trials before you could even be placed in the 'Consideration' list! It is really difficult and they only accept the best. To make it worse, the school fees are really high! So this scholarship is a fortune!"

Genta stood up and hit his chest with his fist. "Well," said Genta proudly, "They will surely chose us, the _Shounen Tantei_!"

Jumping up from their seats, Ayumi, Mitsuhiko and Genta punched the air with their fists and shouted in unison, "Yeah!"

"Ayumi-chan, Tsuburaya-kun and Kojima-kun," Kobayashi-sensei called out, suddenly from the front of the class, "Get back to your seats. I have an important announcement to make."

Once the entire class settled down, Kobayashi-sensei announced, "As you all know, there is a group of examiners from Japan International School at 10 am today. They are going to be sitting in through the lessons and assessing all of you. So put on your best behaviour and show off your best skills! There might be a chance that you will get into the school! So best of luck everyone and show them that you are just as smart as the students in Japan International School alright?"

Shouting "_Hai!" _cheerfully, the children began to straighten their clothes and tried to look as smart as possible. Kobayashi-sensei smiled and just as she was about to begin lessons, she realised there was a missing student.

"Where's Edogawa-kun?" asked Kobayashi-sensei.

"Oh, he said that he will be taking care of Haibara-san this morning as the _hakase _is away. Haibara-san is sick and no one could take care of her so Conan said he will be coming later," answered Mitsuhiko.

"Oh..." muttered Kobayashi-sensei.

Turning to the whiteboard to write out it, she thought, "Well, I hope Edogawa-kun could make it before the examiners come. He have only about an hour and a half before they come. Edogawa-kun have a fighting chance to get into that school. I would not want him to miss it."

**END**

It's still a little short but I will continue trying to make it longer! Pls R&R! Japan International School is made-up.


	3. Chapter 2 Found

**Chapter2- Found?**

"Damn.." muttered Conan as he sped through the throng of people walking the pavements on his Turbo Engine Skateboard. Ignoring the shocked looks from the people he passed by, Edogawa Conan, kid-turned Kudou Shinichi, continued his journey to Teitan Elementary School. Conan glanced at his watch. The time showed 10 am. Cursing inwardly, he increased the speed of his skateboard.

"Damn it!" muttered Conan again, "Why did _hakase _leave Haibara in my care and go happily to a science conference? And Haibara is really sick as well. I could have left her earlier but she looked so sick that I had to stay! If only she fell asleep earlier, I might be less late than I am now!"

Conan turned around the corner of the street and accelerated down the path again. The elementary school was in sight. Conan zoomed past the iron gates of the school and quickly leapt off the skateboard. Shouldering it, he noticed a black Porsche parked in a corner of the car park. Conan took a closer look and his blood ran cold.

"Impossible…" thought Conan as he stared at the Porsche unbelievingly with his shocking blue eyes, "What is Gin's car doing here?"

Conan approached in hesitantly. What was Gin's car doing here? It was certainly a Porsche 356A, Gin's favourite model of car. This kind of car was hard to find running around anywhere, much less Japan. Did Gin have business here in Teitan Elementary School? Conan's heart missed a beat and his eyes widened in fear. Is it possible… That Gin had come to find him and Haibara? Conan ran to the car and stood on his tip-toes to look through the windows. Nothing out of ordinary in the car. The leather seats were gleaming as usual. Gin took pride in his Porsche. No way was he going to let it be dirty in anyway. Conan looked around the car and he saw a full ashtray. Gin likes smoking.

"Could it be…" muttered Conan as he lifted his hand to pull open the door of the black Porsche.

"Hey!"

Conan turned around to locate the owner of the rough voice who prevented him to continue his spying. Then Conan saw the headmaster of the school, Uematsu Ryujiro, peering at him under his heavy eye brows. He pointed at Conan with a gnarled finger and motioned for Conan to come to him. Conan reluctantly left the Porsche, glancing back at it once, wishing that the headmaster didn't notice him just then. Conan walked slowly to the headmaster.

Once Conan was close enough, Uematsu said, "Why are you so late Edogawa-kun? School started two hours ago!"

"_Gomenasai_," apologised Conan, "I had to take care of Haibara. She's sick and the _hakase _is not around."

"Well, go ahead to class then Edogawa-kun," said the aged headmaster, "You don't want to miss your chance to get into JIS right?"

Conan blinked once in confusion. "JIS?" repeated Conan. He knew what JIS meant but what did Japan International School have to do with anything?

"You missed out on the news, eh?" said Uematsu, "There is a scholarship programme and visitors from JIS is looking around to find a gifted student to offer them a chance to enter JIS. You are smart, Edogawa-kun. Who knows they might chose you for the scholarship programme."

Patting Conan on the head, he said, "Well, you better be off to class now. You are already late."

Pushing Conan towards the classroom block, the headmaster entered his office. Conan sighed and shifted the skateboard from his shoulders to place them in between his arm and body. Conan walked off towards his class, all the time pondering about Gin's car.

What was it doing here? Is there something that brings Gin to Teitan Elementary School? Is there some kind of connection between Gin's car being here and the visitors from JIS? If Gin was really looking for him and Haibara, why not just grab both of them on the streets? Why create a story about a scholarship and find them in school where there were many witnesses?

"Argh… This is too confusing," muttered Conan as he ran his hand through his dark hair.

Conan looked up and realised he was already at his classroom door. The sign "Class 1-B" was placed above the sliding door , which was pulled close. Conan sighed as he braced himself for another boring day in an elementary school. He pulled open the door and went in.

His eyes widened with shock as he stared at the two men behind the class. Garbed in black all over, Gin and Vodka sat on two too-small chairs. They were staring at him with an unreadable expression on their faces. Conan stared back, eyes wide with shock and disbelief as he tried to recollect his thoughts. Oblivious to Kobayashi-sensei talking to him and looks from his fellow classmates, Conan have eyes only for Gin and Vodka who turned him into a small child with the drug Haibara created. His heart beat faster as a flurry of emotions passed through Conan. Anger, surprise, disbelief… Fear. If they tried to do anything now, the children will be hurt.

Gin smiled a mechanical smile as he surveyed Conan closely with his stone, cold, grey eyes. "So…" said Gin loudly, "You are the little Tantei-kun whom everyone is in awe with."

**END**

Finished with this chapeter. I hope it's a better than the previous two.


	4. Chapter 3 Lessons with Class 1B

**CHAPTER 3- Lessons with 1-B**

**Gin's POV**

Gin watched the boy who just entered the class room. He was dressed in a baseball jacket which he wore over a white shirt. He wore a pair of blue jeans and at his feet, he wore a pair of red sneakers. With a book bag and his appearance, it was extremely easy to pass him off as a ordinary child. But his accomplishments, it was not any first grader could do. After spending some time in other classes, Gin heard that this boy, Edogawa Conan, was extremely intelligent for a 7 year old. The police had sung praises for him and the teachers of the school were baffled by the boy's wit and talent. But the most interesting fact about the kid was that he lived with the famous detective, Mouri Kogoro, more commonly known as Sleeping Kogoro due to his famous sleeping pose when he made his deductions.

Gin looked at Edogawa Conan's face and saw fear in it. Behind those over-sized glasses of his, Gin saw not only fear but maturity that reached far beyond the boy's years on this earth. Gin laughed inwardly. The boy was petrified by their presence. Well that was understandable. Dressed in black as they were, they were a dominating sight. With Vodka being the big-boned person he was, it struck more fear into the children of the school. It was hard to find out who was a possible recruit for the Organization when they were numb with fright. Gin hoped that the boy, Edogawa Conan, would prove to be more than the rest.

"Well," said Gin, "You are the little Tantei-kun that everyone is in awe with."

*_change to Conan's POV_*

"Edogawa-kun," called Kobayashi-sensei, "Edogawa-kun."

Conan heard his homeroom teacher calling his name, faintly in the back of his mind. Snapping back to reality, he looked up to see Kobayashi-sensei watching him worriedly. He looked around at the class and saw the surprised faces of his classmates. Sneaking a glance at Vodka and Gin, Conan noticed that they too were looking at him.

"Edogawa-kun," repeated the sensei, "Why are you so late? I know you want to take care of Haibara-san but why until you are two hours late? Did you realise you missed a lot today?"

Conan bowed slightly to his teacher and said, "_Gomenasai sensei_."

Shaking her head, Kobayashi-sensei told him to go to his seat. Conan walked slowly to his seat, eyes not once leaving Gin and Vodka. They were watching him too but not as Conan expected. Their eyes showed interest and amusement as they followed him back to his seat. Conan threw his book bag on his table and stared at them. Vodka had apparently lost interest but Gin was still watching him with his killer grey eyes. Conan sat and turned his back on them. He could still feel Gin's eyes looking at his back.

Kobayashi-sensei stood in front of the class and said nervously, "Well, since everyone us here, will you talk the class Ishikawa-san?"

Bolting up at the mention of an unknown name, Conan watched as Vodka stood up and made his way to the front. Ishikawa would be made-up name for sure, Conan thought grimly, as he watched Vodka closely. Glancing back once, he saw that Gin was still looking at him. Turning back with a snap, Conan focused on Vodka. Gin's attention on him was a bit unsettling.

Vodka cleared his throat. The gruff sound made everyone except Conan jump up in fear. The children were watching him with a frightened expression on their faces. " Small wonder," thought Conan dryly, "Vodka's body size could scare a bear."

"Well, everyone," said Vodka with a fake honeyed voice, "As you all know, my partner and I are here to look for possible candidates for Japan International School's scholarship programme. This is a golden chance for all of you. To get into JSI is a dream come true for all of you. So do not hesitate to show us your talents."

Ending his speech there, he moved back to the back of the class. The children who were looking scared, had lightened up by Vodka's encouragement. Conan shook his head. How could they be fooled by Vodka's fake cheery voice and smile. Conan glanced back at them and saw Gin and Vodka whispering to each other. Vodka was gripping a bulky item underneath his shirt, his face was of an angry man. A gun probably.

Conan turned away and thought, "JSI's scholarship programme? So they are here to look for talented kids. Are they trying to look for new recruits? They did make Haibara work on the drug when she was young."

Glancing back at them, Conan watched Gin and Vodka look around the classroom with a bored expression on their faces. "At least it seems that they didn't find out about Haibara and I," Conan thought.

Turning around to the front again, he watched Kobayashi-sensei write mathematics equations on the whiteboard. "But then… if they are here to find new recruits," thought Conan, barely paying attention to Kobayashi-sensei who was teaching, "That means they are looking for talented children. If they are looking for talented children, is it possible that I am one of their possible candidates? How about Mitsuhiko? Although he might be a bit childish, he is smart. Ayumi too."

Clenching his fists, he watched Mitsuhiko answer Kobayashi-sensei's question easily. Glancing at Gin and Vodka, he saw that they were looking at Mitsuhiko with an interested look. Conan turned away, anger and anxiety overwhelming him.

"No," thought Conan furiously, "I can't let the kids get involved in the Organization! If they get involved, their lives will be in danger!"

Breathing hard, Conan made a decision. "Although this will not benefit me," Conan thought, "I have to draw their attention away from the rest of the children. If they only notice me, they would not be involved. I am already involved so it's better off like this."

"Edogawa-kun,' Kobayashi-sensei called, sanpping Conan out of his train of thoughts, "Pay attention!"

Conan looked up at Kobayashi-sensei. Kobayashi-sensei rapped the board with her pointer and said, "Since you don't feel the need to pay attention to my explanation about the new topic, why not answer the question on the board?"

Conan looked at the board and saw the question:

1/6 + 1/3 =

"What simple maths," Conan thought, as he stood up, "But it serve my purpose."

"1/2, Kobayashi-sensei," Conan answered lazily, before plopping down back into his chair.

Then, Conan heard Mitsuhiko giggling, followed by the rest of the class. Conan looked at them in confusion. Isn't the answer half? Conan tried to make sense of the laughter but he could not make heads or tails of it.

Laughing, Mitsuhiko said gleefully, "Wow! Even Conan could not get a simple question answer right. Well, Conan, you can't get it right everytime!"

More laughter followed Mitsuhiko's words. Conan slowly began to realise why they were laughing. Looking at Kobayashi-sensei, who looked shocked and looking at Vodka, who was confused, Conan realised the reason to their laughter.

"So, what's the answer Mitsuhiko?" Conan said coldly, his voice icy and harsh.

The laughter died out immediately. Everyone was looking at Conan in shock. Conan never used that kind of voice with anyone. That cold, harsh tone didn't suit Conan at all. Mitsuhiko who was looking so gleeful, was looking at Conan with confusion and a little bit of fear. When Conan repeated his question again with the same kind of coldness, Mitsuhiko paled.

Swallowing, Mitsuhiko stammered out, "T-three sixths."

Conan sighed in exasperation. He knew it. Fractions was a new topic so simplifications were not taught yet. No wonder they all thought Conan got it wrong.

"Three sixths is the right answer but so is half," Conan said. "Right, Kobayashi-sensei?"

Kobayash-sensei nodded. The students looked more surprised and turned to Conan who was looking at them with an unreadable expression. They all muttered their apologies and went silent.

Kobayashi-sensei, however, was still looking at Conan with a shock expression. "Conan," she said, "How did you know about simplification? I haven't even taught it yet."

Conan shrugged as though it was not a big deal. Kobayashi-sensei nodded to herself, knowing that Conan knew more than anyone else in the class. The children looked at Conan weirdly and Conan felt their frighterned gazes on him. Inwardly, he flinched. He hated to act like this, like a total spoilt brat, but still. It was to keep everyone else safe. He felt sorry that everyone was frightened by his tone. But the top priority was to keep them safe, to not get them involved. Conan could apologise to them later.

Conan peeked at Gin and Vodka again. They were looking at him with intrest. Gin's mouth were turned up at the corners slightly. Conan looked away, satisfied that he had gained their attention for now. Now he had to just continue with his show until the end of school. He had to be the only one they are intrested in. He had to be the only one.

**END**

I'm not sure about 1st graders learning fractions but that was the only maths equation that was simple enough and have two answers. So hope this chapter is better than the last ones. Pls R&R.


	5. Chapter 4 Unsure

**CHAPTER 4- Unsure**

_*Conan's POV*_

Conan raced down the stairs, taking it two at a time. School had just ended and Conan had lost sight of Gin and Vodka. They had left to look through more classes after Class 1-B's mathematics lesson. Conan could not have went after them without raising suspisions so he stayed in the class, waiting for the bell to signal the end of school so he could chase after them. After what seemed like an eternity, the bell sounded and Conan was the first to leap up from his chair and leave the classroom. But no matter where he looked, Conan could not find them.

Jumping down the last three steps, Conan ran to the car park to find out if they were still in the school. As he was approaching the car park, the black Porsche started to move and Conan watched it drive out of the school gates and away from his line of vision. Conan's heavy breathing slowed as he stared blankly at the place where they disappeared. Despair and relief overcame him. Despair because he could not attack them in any way but relief that they had left Teitan Elementary alone. Perhaps they did not find Conan talented enough. If Conan wasn't good enough, then no one else in the school is.

"Looking for the visitors, Conan?"

Conan spun around to find Mitsuhiko, Genta and Ayumi glaring at him. Conan stared at them, waiting for them to continue. Their hands were on their hips and they were extremely angry. Conan could tell by the looks on their faces that they weren't only angry- they were hurt. They felt betrayed.

Genta's face was reddening with fury. He clenched his fists and shouted, "Oi, Conan! Why did you suddenly become so smart in front of the visitors? They were only looking at you throughout their time with us! It is so unfair!"

"You should have kept quiet, Conan-kun," said Ayumi softly. Her lips trembled and she was trying her best not to cry. Conan felt his heart become heavier with sorrow when he saw how pained Ayumi. He wished they would just scream at him. It was better than suffering from their silent disappointment with him.

"They already knew you were smart," Mitsuhiko said, "You didn't need to show yourself off. They already knew about you but they didn't know about us. You should have let us have a chance to get into JSI too. But instead, you stole the limelight and you were even cold to me, Conan-kun."

They shook their head sadly and walked past Conan without uttering another word. Genta stopped in his tracks to talk to Conan again but Ayumi and Mitsuhiko stopped him and pulled him away. The trio walked out of the gates, never looking back once. Conan watched them go and felt a heartache again. It hurts but Conan needed to keep them safe. There was no other way. If they got involved, even more people would be in danger. They were better off not knowing.

"Edogawa-kun."

Turning around, Conan saw his headmaster looking down at him with a grave expression.

"A little friend trouble, Edogawa-kun?" asked the headmaster.

Conan shrugged. He didn't want to answer such an obvious question. The answer was right around them. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko weren't the only one who were upset by Conan's attitude and actions earlier. Cold looks were shot in his direction. Whispers could be heard behind his back. They were all talking about how Conan stole the glory all for himself. And it seemed that the news had already spread throughout the entire school. It wasn't only the students from Class 1-B that were giving him dirty looks. Conan sighed. It was suffocating to be the center of such hatred. Hoping the headmaster would finsh the conversation soon, Conan looked up at the headmaster, hoping that his impatience and uneasiness would be noticed.

However, the headmaster sighed and said, "You shouldn't be too worried about the stares and harsh talk about you Edogawa-kun. You were trying to go to a better school to have a better future. It wasn't you fault. Do not worry. All these resentment would die out soon. You don't have to worry about it."

Uncomforted by the headmaster's words, Conan bowed slightly and asked for permission to leave. Once he received the leave he was desperately wanting, Conan turned on his heel and hurriedly strode to the gates, ignoring all resentful glances and the whispers. He quickly passed the gates and he unshouldered his skateboard. Leaping on it, he increased it's velocity and he sped off once again.

"I have to find them," he thought, "I can't lose them again when they are so close. But first, I need to inform the FBI about this."

Turning around a corner, he began his journey to Teitan High School. School would have ended by now but she would still be there. Unless she ran off to the arcades to play. Conan hoped she would be there. He didn't have time to search every arcade in Beika just to find her. He could call her but there was no guarantee that they might not be listening in his phone calls. It was better to meet her face to face. If the Black Organization still did not know about her being a FBI agent, it would seem like a normal chat between a young boy and a high-school teacher. Hopefully, Gin and Vodka was still around. This might be the chance he was looking for.

Conan leapt off his skateboard and picked it up. He had arrived at Teitan High School. He walked briskly in. The courtyard was empty. Surely most of the students had left school. No one stayed back in school unless they had extra-corriculum activities. Conan walked into the school building and into the shoe locker room to take off his shoes.

"Conan-kun? What are you doing here?" a familiar voice sounded from the other end of the room.

Conan looked at the direction of the voice. Mouri Ran, his best friend before he turned into Conan, was walking towards him. Suzuki Sonoko was walking alongside her with a irritated expression on her face. That expression was always on her face whenever she saw Conan. Somehow or another, Sonoko saw Conan as an annoying little brat.

"Well," Conan mused to himself, "That was always how she treated me- even before I turned small."

"Conan-kun, what are you doing here?" asked Ran when she was close ebough to Conan.

"I'm here to see Jodie-sensei," said Conan with his child-like voice, "Have you seen her Ran-neechan?"

Just then, Jodie Starling leapt out from behind some shoe lockers, smiling widely. Her shoulder-length blonde hair was flying wildly around her face as she literaly skipped over to Conan and the others.

"Oh, you are looking for me Cool Kid?" asked Jodie, calling Conan by her affectionate nickname for him.

"I need to talk to you Jodie-sensei," said Conan, nodding thoughtfully to Ran and Sonoko.

Arching an eyebrow, Jodie muttered "oh" before turning to face Ran and Sonoko who were looking at them with a curious expression.

Smiling widely, Jodie placed her hands on their shoulders and steered them towards the door. "You girls should really go home," a cheerful Jodie said, "Have you heard the weather forecast? They said there will be a heavy rain today. You girls should go home before it starts raining cats and dogs."

Pushing them out, she shut the door behind them, ignoring their protests. Her face changed from happy to a business-like look. Walking over to Conan, she crouched in front of him so her face would be in level with his.

"I met Gin and Vodka today," Conan began.

Her eyes widening with shock, Jodie asked, "Where? Did they know about you and that girl? What happened?"

Conan quicly related what had happened to him in the past few hours. Jodie's face grew grave. "So," said Jodie once Conan finished his story, "they came to find new talents under the pretense that they are coming to find new talents for the JSI scholarship programme?"

Conan nodded and Jodie said, "And you tried to keep their attention away from others by drawing it to yourself instead?"

Conan nodded again. Jodie sighed and said, "It wasn't a smart play Cool Kid but it was probably the only thing you could do then. So what now? Did they come up to you yet?"

"Not yet," answered Conan, "But it won't be long. If I didn't fufill their criteria, then it should be safe to assume that no one else did. If they don't like any of us, hopefully they won't leave just yet so we could bring them down. But if they are intrested in me, I'll have to try my best to think I'm not worth it while stirring them to you, the FBI, to capture them."

"Are you going to tell her?" asked Jodie. Her voice became hushed when she mentioned Haibara.

Conan thought about Haibara. Images of her pale, feverish face flashed across his mind. The frightened look across her face whenever she hears or senses the Organization's presence.

Conan shook his head. "No…" said Conan softly, "No way am I going to tell her that I might have attracted the Organization's attention. Especially when she's sick. This might just tip her over the edge."

Conan looked up at Jodie-sensei and shrugged. Giving her a reassuring smile, he said, "Well, it just might be a fluke. Maybe they are looking for students to join JSI. Maybe JSI and the Organization are somehow connected and the Boss told Gin and Vodka to do the job."

Turning on his heel, he walked towards the door. "I got to go now Jodie-sensei," said Conan, waving at her, "If you want to talk to me, don't call me. Meet me face to face. Well, _jana sensei!"_

Conan jumped onto his skateboard again and sped off through the main gates and back onto the pavements. He checked his watch. It was already 2pm. Conan cursed inwardly. He needed to return to the _hakase's _house and look after Haibara. Hopefully, she have not waken up from her deep slumber. Conan increased the speed of the skateboard, expertly weaving in and out of the crowd of people.

As he was turning a corner, he looked at a corner mirror. His eyes widened in shock. Although they were around another corner, the front of the car was visible through the mirror. A black Porsche 356A. The occupants were not visible but Conan was confident that they were inside. Gin and Vodka. Conan slowed down, still looking at the mirror. The Porsche started to move and they turned a corner.

"Damn," Conan thought angrily, "They're tailing me. I can't go back to the _hakase _now. I should try to lose them before going there. I can't bring them anywhere near Haibara."

Conan began to move on his skateboard again, taking his eyes off the mirror. He manuevered the skateboard again through the street but when he reached a crossroad, Conan took a route that did not lead to the _hakase's _house. Conan turned slightly. Gin's car was still in sight eventhough there was quite a distance between Conan and the car. Conan turned away from them. He had to lead them away.

_*change to Gin's POV*_

"_Aniki, _are you sure about this?" asked Vodka from the passenger seat.

Gin watched the boy as he looked slightly over his shoulders to see if they were tailing him. The kid knows what he was doing. If anyone else looked at him, they wouldn't notice that he was looking over his shoulders. His head was turned in a not-so-obvious way. However, Gin had training and he knew that the kid was looking for them. Smirking as he watched the kid speed off on that cool little gadget of his, he thought, "He's good."

Pressing the cigratte butt in his hand into the ashtray, Gin's started his engine and followed the kid slowly.

"I'm sure Vodka," replied Gin. "That kid is worth our time and cigrattes."

Gin grinned maniacally to himself while Vodka just shrugged, still unconvinced. Gin thought as he watched the kid turn another corner, "The boss would like him. Young and talented. He's perfect."

Following the kid again at a distance, Gin and Vodka continued their spying on the possible recruit, Edogawa Conan.

**END**

**4th chapter for this story! Thnks for all the wonderful reviews. Really appreciate it! Next chapter will be out soon! :)**


	6. Chapter 5 Trust

**CHAPTER 5- Trust**

**I realised that I haven't been putting this in my stories.  
>So: I do not own Detective Conan. All rights are reserved to Aoyama Gosho.<br>**

"You are not telling me something, Kudou-kun," whispered Haibara weakly.

Even though her voice was weak, her eyes were not. Her eyes were glaring at Conan, daring him to lie to her again. With her jaw set and her arms folded across her chest, she narrowed her eyes at Conan. The corners of her mouth turned down and she stared at Conan icily.

Conan gulped. Haibara's sharp. To escape her scrutiny, he looked at the chicken soup he was cooking. The surface of the soup was bubbling furiously. Conan quickly stirred the soup and switched off the fire. He got a bowl of soup and jumped off the stool he was standing on. His height was a massive problem. He couldn't even look over the kitchen top without tip-toeing.

He walked over to Haibara who was sitting up on her bed. He walked up to the bed, not looking at her. Conan could feel her sharp eyes drilling holes into the back of his head. Conan just reached the _hakase's _house and he immediately started to cook for Haibara. It took some time to lose Gin and Vodka, but he eventually did. However, when he reached the _hakase's _house, he found Haibara awake and waiting for him. Although he managed to dodge the question about his whereabouts, Haibara sensed that Conan was hiding something from her.

Placing the steaming bowl of soup on the bedside table, he said, "Eat. You need the energy."

"I didn't know you can cook Kudou-kun," said Haibara, picking up the bowl and spoon. She blew on the hot surface of the soup and looked at Conan. His back was still facing her.

"You are hiding something from me," said Haibara in a matter-of-fact way.

Conan turned to face her. "I am not. What make you say that?" he asked.

"You came late and you're too tensed," Haibara replied easily. She known Conan for quite some time already. She knows how Conan kept his emotions under that poker face of his. Smiling as though nothing has happened was his speciality apart from solving bloody murders. Haibara watched Conan walk back to the stove to place the rest of the soup inside the microwave to keep it warm.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Conan replied testily, "I only came late because I had to help Ran with her shopping and if I am tensed, that's because the _hakase _left you alone when you are sick. That's all."

Conan glanced up to the clock. It's already 4.30pm. Conan had been on the streets for almost two hours, trying to lose Gin and Vodka. He needed to return back to the Mouri Detective Agency. It was already growing dark and he didn't want Ran to be scolding him when he got back. He looked at Haibara who was still staring at him while slowly sipping on the soup. She was still really sick. Her face was still pale and when Conan took her temperature earlier, it was still a soaring 41 degrees Celsius. Her sore throat was still as bad as before. It seemed that it would be a while until Haibara could leave the house. It's better that way anyway. Conan needed her out of sight. Out of Gin's and Vodka's reach. She needed to remain ignorant about their visit, at least for now. She was still too sick and Conan didn't want to make her even more ill with worry. The last time she was sick and had an encounter with the Organization, she fainted. Conan wasn't going to let anything happen to her. Not again.

Picking up his book bag at the side of the front door, he shouldered it and turned to face Haibara. "I am going now," Conan said, "Take care of yourself. If you want more soup, heat it up in the microwave before eating it. I'll be back tomorrow morning."

Haibara managed a weak "goodbye" and Conan pulled open the door and walked out. He closed the door behind him carefully and began his journey back to Ran's home.

~Back inside the house~

Haibara quietly sipped the soup that Conan made for her. It was surprisingly tasty. Conan cooked well. Haibara smiled. This small gesture, cooking for her, meant a lot to her. Coming over earlier in the morning, staying with her until she slept, helping her to take to prepare her medicine, Conan took care of her well. Then, she frowned slightly. She could tell that Conan was hiding something from her. He hadn't complained more than once about the _hakase _ever since he returned. And when he came into the house, he was looking over his shoulders. As though he was looking for someone. He barely complained about school and about how the Detective Boys were so childish. In fact, he didn't open his mouth to complain at all. He only asked her if she was any better. Then, there was total awkward silence between both of them.

Haibara scooped the last of the soup and drank it. She climbed out of bed and walked over to the sink unsteadily. She placed her bowl in the sink before going to the counter where Conan had placed her medicine. She took them and swallowed the pills with a glass of water.

"Maybe I should go back to sleep," she thought sleepily as she yawned.

"Ring…Ring"

The phone was ringing. Haibara looked at it and sighed. Just when she wanted to sleep. She stumbled towards the phone and picked it up.

"Hello? Agasa's residence," she said.

"Haibara!" shouted Ayumi from the other end of the phone, "Are you alright?"

Mutters from the other end of the phone could be heard. Haibara smiled and replied, "Yeah, I think I'm a bit better."

Then a scuffle could be heard from their side. Then Genta spoke out loudly, "Did Conan came to see you?"

"Yeah, why?" Haibara asked.

"He was such a jerk today!" complained Genta, "He tried to act all smart in front of the visitors!"

Haibara's brows scrunched together in confusion. What are they talking about? Visitors? Acting smart? What was going on?

"What happened?" Haibara asked urgently.

The Detective boys then related, actually complained, out the story about how Conan suddenly answered all the questions perfectly, even though he didn't listen in class. They also told Haibara about the scholarship and the way the inspectors looked at Conan with interest.

"Wait," Haibara cut into their complaining, "Conan did that?"

'Yeah!" the three of them chorused loudly.

"What on earth is going on?" Haibara thought. Conan trying to go into a better school? He never mentioned about the JIS scholarship. He never said anything about this at all. Is he tired of ordinary school life already? Maybe he wanted to go to a school where his talents would be recognised and not mocked. But if that's true, why didn't he tell her?

"Um… I want to hang up now," said Haibara, not wanting to continue the conversation. She suddenly felt more tired and weary. Cutting the connection between her and the Detective Boys, she walked over to her bed and slumped into it. She lied back and thought furiously.

What is going on? Didn't Conan say that he didn't want to attract attention in order to not let the Organization know that he was Kudou Shinichi. What's with the sudden change of mind? And more importantly, why didn't he tell her? Is there a hidden meaning behind his actions in school today?

Haibara's thoughts turned into worry and she let out a yawn. Conan would be back later. She curled up and thought hard again. But sleepiness and worry overcame her and she fell into a dreamless slumber.

**Well, how is it? Haibara heard about Conan showing off but she didn't hear about the inspectors being Gin and Vodka! Climax of this story is coming up soon so stick around to find out! Please review!**


	7. Chapter 6 Alone

**CHAPTER 6- Alone**

**Again, I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights reserved to Aoyama Gosho.**

The stares were overwhelming. It felt as though thousands of laser beams were directed at him, intending to slice him up. The whispers, the mutterings were even worse. Wait, they couldn't even be considered as whispers. The conversations could be heard even from across the room. The hatred, the disappointment- it was really obvious.

Conan swallowed his orange juice nervously. The children were all staring at him while eating their lunches. It was a little unnerving. They weren't staring at their food. They were staring, wait, _glaring_, at him. Their mouths chewed their food while their eyes followed Conan's every little movement. Conan felt as though he was being stared down by the children. It was extremely unsettling.

He was sitting alone at the lunch table. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko refused to sit with him and went to another table. Conan, although disgruntled, decided to sit alone. Perhaps it's better if the kids stayed away from him for now. He didn't want them to get involved. Right now when Gin and Vodka are still around, it's best if Conan walked away from them. He needed to focus on capturing Gin and Vodka. He also needed to find out what are their plans. He was still unsure about their objectives.

Behind him, Genta who had scoffed down his lunch, made a loud comment. It was loud as the entire room could hear. "That Conan," said Genta loudly, "He thinks he's so smart. Showing off all the time. He is always like that."

Conan, who was holding his juice box, squeezed it in anger. The juice came up from the straw and dripped onto the table. Conan ignored it but instead tried to calm himself. He nearly shouted at Genta in anger. After he managed to control his temper, Conan just continued eating. He needed to think about Gin and Vodka. There was no time for friendship squabbles and heated arguments. He wasn't going to argue with the kids about something that might be a fluke.

The rest of the lessons passed by the same way. He sat alone. Nobody talked to him. However, everybody talked about him. Everywhere he goes, he could hear whispers about him. Conan, although a little worried about the rumors spreading about him, he didn't retaliate nor did he try to stop the rumors. He was too concentrated about finding Gin and Vodka. There was just no time to concern himself about these petty rumors. However, it seemed that everyone else didn't see it the way Conan saw it. Conan heard a couple of girls saying that he couldn't care less about the rumors as he thinks he could go into JIS soon. Therefore, he didn't need to worry about the rumors.

With that, the resentment about Conan heightened. More whispers and more hateful stares. Even the teachers couldn't do anything about the growing hatred towards Conan. Kobayashi-sensei tried to help cool down the fire but it didn't work. Instead her talking to the kids added fuel to the fire, making the fire bigger. It seemed that it will take a while before the resentment dies out.

Finally the bell signaling the end of school sounded. Conan, again, was the first to leap out of his chair and rush out of the class. He was about to burst from all the anger he bottled up inside of him. Genta and Mitsuhiko was insufferable. Conan knew that the rumors started from them. If not, how would the rest of the school know about the numerous murder cases he had helped( actually, completely) solved?

Conan immediately began to make his way to the _hakase's _house. Because he woke up late today, he didn't go to visit Haibara. Conan was worried. Would she be alright if he left her alone? Conan quickly increased the pace of his walking. He had forgotten his skateboard back at the Agency. So now, he had to walk to the house.

"Somebody help!"

A cry for help pierced the air and Conan immediately looked towards the direction of the cry. A petite woman, dressed in finery, was on the ground of the pavement on the opposite side of the road. She was screaming and she was pointing to something. Conan looked at the direction of the point and saw a man dressed in a cap, a brown jacket and jeans, was running away from the woman. In his hands, a glittering LV handbag was visible. He pushed people left and right, out of the way.

Conan ran after the thief on his side of the road. Increasing his speed, he was soon running parallel to the thief. Bending low to turn on his Power-enhancing kick shoes, he ran to a can on the ground in front of him. Screaming, "GO!" he kicked the can and the can flew towards the man. As always, his accuracy was perfect. The can hit squarely on the side of the thief's head and the thief fell to the ground. Conan rushed to the other side of the road, ignoring the cars that were passing by. Once he was beside the unconscious thief, he knelt down, picked up the bag and called for someone to call the police. He walked up to the robbed woman and gave her bag. The woman smiled gratefully at Conan and Conan just nodded and walked off. As he walked, he drew admiring glances from the passer-bys. Conan just walked on, knowing that the thief would remain unconscious until the police come to arrest him. His job here was done. And now he had to return to his current job- taking care of Haibara.

~At the _hakase's _house~

"Haibara!" called Conan as he walked into the house. Closing the door behind him, he dumped his heavy bag onto the floor. He walked over to the bed where Haibara was resting in. She was curled up under the blankets, asleep. Conan saw her sleeping and smiled. She looked a better than yesterday. He walked over to the sink to wash the dirty dishes and to start cooking for her again. He opened the fridge and pulled out some ingredients.

He placed it on the kitchen counter and said to himself, "What should I cook? I don't know what Haibara likes."

"What I like to know is the reason to your actions yesterday in school."

Conan spun around. Haibara was sitting up on her bed, staring at him.

"What are you talking about?" asked Conan nervously. Did she know about Gin and Vodka?

"I want to know why you kept the fact that some scholarship has caught your interest," said Haibara. Her voice was emotionless, just like her face.

"Who told you that?" asked Conan. Although he knew who told her about the scholarship, he asked just to have time to think up of a lie.

"The kids told me," replied Haibara, "So? Why?"

Then, her face changed to a hurt expression. No- betrayed. Conan gulped in fear of her anger.

"I just…" started Conan.

"What?" she cut him off, "Are you tired of normal school? Are you tired of the kids? Are you tired of…" her voice broke, "Are you tired of me?"

Conan's eyes widened. She didn't know. She didn't know about Gin and Vodka. That's good. At least she wouldn't be placed in danger. It's better off her not knowing. But now, he had to deal with her emotions. She was upset. She had every reason to. By the way he acted yesterday, it seemed that he was really trying to get away from the school.

'Haibara," he started, his tone solemn and sad.

"Get out!" screamed Haibara hoarsely. She had mistaken his tone as a confirmation of her fears. Picking up her pillow, she threw it at him. It landed at his feet and she screamed again, straining her voice, "If you are sick of me and the rest, get out!"

Conan watched her as she covered herself in the blanket and disappear completely from his sight. No sound could be heard from her. Conan resignedly went over to the door and picked up his bag, With a fleeting look at Haibara, he pulled open the door and went out.

It was raining. The clouds were grey and heavy, reflecting Conan's heavy mood. The sound of the falling raindrops was Haibara's tears. The tears she never let go. Conan sighed. The Detective Boys had left him, now Haibara. Why, for the first time in his life, did he feel so lost? It felt as though the light at the other end of the tunnel was extinguished by the rain. His heart, which was already so down, sank even further. He looked back on the closed door. He still couldn't hear anything from the other side of the door.

Shaking his head, he took his first step away from Haibara and into the rain. He stood motionlessly there in the rain for a while, the rain drenching him from head to toe. He then began to start running. He ran through the rain, feeling the rain trickle down his face like razorblades. He didn't look back once. He had made his decision to fight the Organization. Even if that means he have to do it alone.

_***somewhere else***_

"It's done."

"How was it?'"

"Perfect. He's accuracy is amazing. You should see him in action."

"I will. Soon. Hehehe, he is getting interesting. Anyway, you should return to base."

"Alright then, I'm on my way."

_End of phone convesrsation_

A beautiful looking woman stepped out of a phonebooth. She looked left and right before walking into a dark back alley, completely disappearing. Then a flash of light appeared illuminating her. She was carrying a LV handbag.

**It's slowly rising into the climax! Posting the next chapter soon! Review please! For all those who had reviewed, THANK YOU! Your reviews give me motivation to conitinue! Thanks again and please continue to stick around to see what happens. :)**


	8. Chapter 7 Trapped

**CHAPTER 7- Trapped**

**The plot thickens in this chapter...  
>As always I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights go to Aoyama Gosho.<strong>

**(~)**

_***some building somewhere***_

"_Aniki_, are you sure about this?" asked Vodka nervously. He was pacing up and down the room while Gin was relaxing on an armchair, smoking.

"Yeah, I am," replied Gin, his voice slightly muffled due to him not opening his mouth wide enough. The cigarette was still in between his lips. Vodka never seen Gin without a cigarette. It was as unnatural as a cat with three eyes.

"But what if he realise that you are still following him?" asked Vodka.

"Do not worry," Gin replied, "He lost us then remember? He surely thinks that we are gone because we couldn't find him. Well, I got to say. He was really good. After making us follow him for two hours, he disappeared completely when I was refilling the tank with fuel. The kid's smart. He made a perfect opportunity so he could disappear and he would be far away by the time we got back to tailing him."

Gin tipped his head back and blew out a ring of smoke from his lips. He smirked and let lose a small laugh. Vodka turned to look at him, perplexed. Poor Vodka, he was still worried over this situation. He was surprised at the kid's intelligence in school. He was shocked when the kid lost them when they were tailing him. He was unnerved when the kid showed such strength and accuracy. Now, he was a little afraid. Vodka said he had a feeling that the boy was still hiding something.

Gin was slightly impressed by the kid's intelligence and abilities. But what he was more interested in was the kid's personality. That voice that Gin heard at his class. That cold, fearless tone made Gin smile. His emotionless eyes when he looked at the boy who dared to question him. The kid didn't even show the slightest emotion except exasperation. As though he hated to deal with such immature children. His body was never tensed nor was it ever relaxed. It was somewhere in between, a perfect balance. That made him alert yet uncaring at the same time. Gin could sense great potential from the kid. And his instincts were never wrong.

"I just want to see his true powers Vodka," Gin said, trying to ease the tension of his partner, "If he isn't as good as I hope he would be, I would leave him alone. And you would never need to worry about him again."

"When are you leaving? I'm following," Vodka asked.

"Soon," Gin answered, "It's time to see the little Tantei-kun in action."

_***Morning, Mouri Detective Agency***_

Conan was once again woken up by the heavy snoring of Mouri Kogoro. Conan sat up wearily, tired beyond words. He couldn't sleep. Part of the reason was because of the grating snores but mainly it was because of his nightmares. The Detective Boys hurt and disappointed faces flashed through his mind. Haibara's eyes, wild and accusing. Her scream, harsh and painful. He woken up uncountable times only to fall into an uneasy slumber again.

Conan looked up to the wall clock. 7am. Yawning, he stood up and straightened his glasses before staggering towards the door. Thank goodness it's Saturday. No more school. No more stares and uncomfortable situations. Well, at least until Monday, before school starts again. Conan sighed. He should get use to the coldness of his schoolmates. By the looks of it, it was not going to die anytime soon.

He walked into the living room and saw breakfast laid out on the table. He sat in front of it and pulled out a piece of toast from the stack. He ate it dispiritedly. His body was slumped, result of the lack of sleep. He chewed his food slowly, without any energy. Conan stared aimlessly. He really felt lost all of a sudden.

Then Ran walked out of the kitchen. "Ah, Conan-kun," she said when she noticed him, "_Ohayou gozaimasu._"

"_Ohayou gozaimasu, Ran-neechan,_" answered Conan with a dead voice. Ran's face showed concern for the little ward who was like her little brother.

"_Daijoubu desuka?_" Ran asked worriedly.

"Yeah!" Conan replied, his voice more stronger and cheerful. He looked up at Ran to smile at her.

"That's good. I thought something was wrong," Ran smiled back.

She went into her room. Immediately, Conan allowed the fake smile to slide of his face. It hurts to smile when he didn't feel like smiling. Nothing's wrong? Everything's wrong! His friends were against him, Haibara hates him. To make it worse, Gin and Vodka was lurking around somewhere with objectives that were unclear. Thinking about them always give him a headache. He had to worry about his friends safety, especially Haibara. He sighed sadly. He felt like a great weight was placed on his small shoulders. But at least, he glanced at the closed door of Ran's room, she doesn't know anything about them yet.

"Conan-kun, do you want to follow me to the bank?" asked Ran behind the close door.

"Bank?" Conan repeated dumbly.

"I need to withdraw some money. _Otousan _lost all his money in a horse race. I need to take some money from my savings," Ran said as she walked out of her room.

"Ok, I'll follow," Conan replied. He has nothing else better to do anyway. A trip to the bank might take his mind of the current events.

After eating his breakfast and washing up, he and Ran left the house. Kogoro was still lying fast asleep in his bed. They walked for about twenty minutes to the bank. On their journey there, Ran was full of spirit, chatting cheerfully unknowing Conan's slightly depressed state. However his mood lightened up when he watched Ran chirruping away. This was how it's supposed to be. Ran should always be happy. She don't need to worry herself with the dark, dangerous Organization. Conan had jumped into the pit of darkness willingly, knowing the possible consequences. He had made his choice.

They walked into the bank. Although the bank had just opened up for business, there were many people in it already. After instructing Conan to wait on some sofas, she queued up. Conan sighed. The queue was long. It would probably about half an hour before Ran reaches the counter.

"Hey, it's him," a familiar voice jolted Conan out of his miserable thoughts.

Conan looked up and saw Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko staring at him. Their arms were crossed and their eyes were narrowed. Conan watched them as they turned their backs on him and walk away. Even Ayumi was angry with him. Conan shook his head to clear his mind and looked around. Most of the people in the bank were in business suits with a few dressed in home clothes.

"Ding!"

The signal for the automatic glass doors sounded. Conan turned to look at the newcomers. There was a group of five men. They were all dressed in business suits and all were carrying black duffel bags. Conan felt a sense of foreboding. Something wasn't right.

Then one of the man pulled out a large device from his bag and placed it on the table. Conan's eyes widened. "No way," Conan thought, "That's a cell phone jammer. That means…"

Then one of the man shouted out loud and clear, "Everyone, this is a bank robbery!"

Everyone turned to face the group. They had pulled guns out from their bags. The security guards tried to pull out their own guns but were shot down by two of the men. Screams filled the room. The two shooters pulled the security jackets from the two lifeless bodies and wore them. Conan knew that they were going to masquerade as security guards so passer bys would not get suspicious. They turned over the 'OPEN' sign so the "CLOSED' part faced the outside. The dead security guards were dragged out of sight into another room.

'Everyone, get into the conference room upstairs. You would find your cell phones useless so do not even try of thinking to call the police. All alarms have been deactivated," announced the man who spoke earlier. It seems that he was the boss.

"Do you understand what that means? No one is coming to save you," said the leader, smirking, "NO ONE! So just do what we say alright! Get up to the conference room now!"

When no one moved, the boss sighed and pointed his gun to the ceiling. Shooting out 2 shots, he screamed, "NOW!"

With that, everyone began to move quickly upstairs. The boss and his two subordinates followed them. Upstairs, there more people. All were employees of the bank. They had heard the commotion downstairs and were trying their best to operate their now-useless phone. The two subordinates rounded up those employees, using their gun to hit them sometimes and brought them into the conference room.

Conan walked into the room without a shred of emotion on his face. When one of the man barked at him to hurry up, Conan stared at him coldly, making the guy flustered at his nonchalant face. Conan had no time to act as a child now. He needed to find out a way to get everyone out of the bank safely. The robbers didn't wear masks. That indicates that they were going to kill everyone when they had cleared out the vault. Conan gritted his teeth. His wristwatch had ran out of sleeping needles and he wasn't wearing his Anywhere ball dispenser belt.

"Damn!" he scolded himself for being so lax about his protection.

Conan gave a glare at the robbers. His mind worked furiously, thinking up an escape plan.

"You are not going to let you get away with this," Conan thought, "I am not!"

**(~)**

_**Transalation  
>Aniki- Partner<br>Ohayou gozaimasu- Good Morning.  
>Daijoubu desuka- Are you alright?<br>Otousan- Father.**_****

**Tah-dah! How is it? Took me a while to think about this plot though. The bank robbery was inspired by Burn Notice, a TV show. Review please! :)**


	9. Chapter 8 Plan

**CHAPTER 8- ****Plan **

**Sorry for the late update! I had to do some research before I could start writing. **

**I just noticed an error in the previous chapter:**

"_You are not going to let you get away with this," Conan thought, "I am not!"_

**It is suppose to be:**

"_I am not going to let you get away with this," Conan thought, "I am not!"_

**Sorry about that everyone!**

**Anyways, I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights go to Aoyama Gosho.**

_**~Previously~**_

_**"Everyone, this is a bank robbery!"**_

_**"Do you understand what **__**that means? No one is coming to save you," said the leader, smirking, "NO ONE! So just do what we say alright! Get up to the conference room now!"**_

… _**The robbers didn't wear masks. That indicates that they were going to kill everyone when they had cleared out the vault. Conan gritted his teeth. His wristwatch had ran out of sleeping needles and he wasn't wearing his Anywhere ball dispenser belt. **_

"_**I am not going to let you get away with this," Conan thought, "I am not!"**_

_**~(~)~**_

The conference room was filled with customers and employees. The women were huddled together at the back of the room, trying to comfort each other while the men were standing around with a worried look on their faces. Conan, Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were the only children in the bank. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were standing together, backs facing Conan. They were whispering quickly to one another, with determined looks on their faces. Conan watched them with narrowed eyes. Whenever they started whispering together without him, it usually meant that they were planning something. And their plans usually get them into trouble and Conan always had to save them. Hoping that they would not do anything reckless, Conan inspected the room.

The conference room was an interior room of the building. There were no windows to the outside so no one from outside the bank could see them. The hallway was completely invisible due to the walls. The only window to the hallway was the small glass window on the door. The floors were carpeted, the walls were covered in a peach-coloured wallpaper. A long glass table, a office table on the side of the room, thirteen office chairs and a cold water dispenser were the only furniture in the room. There was nothing in the room that could be used as a weapon.

"Get in you!"

A shout made Conan look at the door. A scuffle could be heard on the other side of the door. But that was not that caught Conan's attention. Genta was standing beside the door. His pose, his face it all led to Conan thinking that the _Shounen Tantei _were going to do something reckless.

"No, Genta…" whispered Conan, unable to shout.

Then the door opened and an unconscious, slightly pudgy man was thrown in by one of the robbers. The robber stepped into the room a little but that was enough. Genta jumped onto his leg, grabbing it and trying to topple him over. But even Genta's weight wasn't enough to bring down the muscular robber. With a whack on Genta's head with his gun, Genta fell. The robber kicked Genta in the stomach, sending Genta flying. Genta landed sprawled on the floor, stomach down. Ayumi and Mitsuhiko yelled in fright while the adults gasped at the child abuse.

Ayumi's and Mitsuhiko's screams brought the leader rushing to the room. He looked at Genta who was too hurt to move and his fellow robber who was pointing his gun at Genta.

"What happened, Ito?" asked the leader.

"He attacked me Yokoyama," snarled the robber called Ito.

The leader, Yokoyama, looked down at Genta who was now too frightened to move. Yokoyama pulled out his gun from his pants and without looking at Genta, shot him in the arm. Genta screamed in pain. The adults whimpered while Ayumi and Mitsuhiko burst into tears. Conan stood his ground, shocked beyond words.

"This is what would happen to those who try to disturb us," said Yokoyama loudly, "The next time someone decides to attack us, the bullet fired will in between your eyes. And what's more, just as an extra precaution, if I see one policeman, I will kill three of you. Perhaps this would make you guys think before trying to play hero."

He tucked his gun in his pants again. The adults were silent, some were sniffling. Ayumi, Mitsuhiko and Ran were sobbing softly while Genta's screams were reduced to soft whimpers as he clutched his upper right arm. Conan recollected his composure and thought furiously. He needed to save Genta first before he could work on an escape plan. Uncaring about the two armed robbers in the room, Conan started to move to Genta, intent on helping him.

Yokoyama pointed his gun at Conan, stopping him in his tracks. "What are you doing boy?" asked Yokoyama, gun raised so it pointed directly at Conan.

Conan turned to face Yokoyama. Putting on a scared yet determined face, Conan answered, "I have to save my friend, _oji-san._ The wound looks bad, he might die."

"Then he will die," answered Yokoyama easily.

"Everyone here is in a bad psychological state right now and the death of my friend would make them insane," Conan answered, trying to persuade the robbers, "They might attack you and cause trouble. If you let me save my friend, they won't. I just want all of us to survive."

"You think you can save him kid?" asked Ito sarcastically.

"I think I can," answered Conan, "My father is a doctor and I learned some first-aid from him." Conan lied.

"Fine," Yokoyama snapped impatiently, "Knock yourself out kid. Make sure you save him."

Turning around, he stormed out of the room with Ito. Once the door shut, Conan wasted no time in helping Genta to a sitting position. Leaning Genta's back against the wall, Conan ripped out the sleeve covering the wound. Blood was seeping out of the bullet hole. Conan surveyed it, thinking about what he can do.

"Conan-kun," asked Ran, "I thought your father is a businessman."

"I lied," Conan said truthfully. His father was not a businessman nor was he a doctor. "I needed them to believe that I have some skill to save Genta," Conan said.

"Conan-kun," whimpered Ayumi, "Will Genta be alright?"

Conan pursed his lips. The wound looked bad but Conan could save Genta. Nodding his head, he motioned for Ran to come closer. Ran walked slowly to Conan.

Raising Genta's arm, ignoring his whimpering, Conan ordered, "Apply direct, steady pressure on the wound Ran-neechan. I need to find some supplies to help Genta."

"Conan-kun," interrupted Mitsuhiko, "You know as well as I do that we need to get out of here! We saw their faces! They won't let us out of here alive!"

Mitsuhiko's words received a shock reaction from the adults. Some of the women sank to the floor, sobbing. Some were saying their prayers while some looked sceptical at Mitsuhiko's words.

"I know Mitsuhiko," Conan replied, standing up from his crouch.

"Do you have a escape plan in mind? You always do," Mitsuhiko said, his voice filled with hope.

"Umm… I'm still working on it," Conan replied, much to the disappointment of everyone.

Conan looked around the room. What could be done to save themselves? The furniture in the room were too big to kick with his shoes and they can't just walk out of this room. He looked around the room, his eyes roaming over the wall. Then something in his brain clicked. Wallpaper is usually used on wooden walls. His eyes snapped back to the wall, more specifically at the wall behind the office desk.

He strode to the office desk and pushed it aside. A power outlet was installed in the wall. Conan turned to the interested crowd and asked the room at large, "What's on the other side of the wall?"

One of the employees replied, "It's just another room. But the room has a fire exit."

Conan smiled. "That's good, we can get out," Conan said.

"We can't walk out of the room," commented one woman, "And we can't just walk through the wall!"

Conan ignored her and crouched. He knocked on the wall. It sounded hollow. Conan smiled again, his brain laying down the possibilities. Using his fingers, he pulled out the power outlet.

"Does anyone have a razor, letter opener or something with a sharp edge?" Conan asked.

One of the employees handed him a scissors. Conan tested the edge. It was sharp enough. Conan placed the sharp edge of the scissors on the upper left corner of the hole where the power outlet used to be. Straining his arms, he began to saw upwards. Gasps sounded.

"I need someone to continue this," Conan said. When one of the adults stepped forward, Conan instructed him, "Saw upwards, then to the left then downwards. Then saw downwards from the bottom left corner of the hole, all the way to the floor."

"_Chotto. _Won't the robbers notice we are cutting through the wall?" asked someone.

"So someone watch the door. When the robbers come close, use the office desk to cover it," Conan ordered, "I will take care of the robbers. Where is the main power control room?"

"Beside the elevator," someone answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Someone watch the door please," Conan said, ignoring the question.

Someone walked up to the door to watch it. The sniffling stopped, the sobs lessened. Conan's confidence strengthened everyone and they all nodded to themselves, resolved to survive. Some went to help the person at the wall while some helped the guard at the door.

Then one of the woman asked, "Who are you kid? You seem sure that we will all get out of this alive."

Conan smiled again. Turning to face her, he replied, "Edogawa Conan, _tantei sa._"

His name received much shock from the crowd. "Edogawa Conan, the famous kid?" Whispers went around the room. Conan smiled inwardly. The people, who were frightened out of their wits a while ago were now busy trying to help. Everyone pitched in, either with the sawing of the wall, the lookout or comforting Genta who was now moaning in pain. Conan steeled himself. Bracing himself, he pulled open the door and walked out.

Only one robber was still on the second floor. He was facing the stairs but turned the instant Conan walked out of the door. He ran to Conan who didn't bother to face him.

He raised his gun in his left hand as his right hand was occupied with a can of _Red Bull_. "Hey kid," shouted the robber, "What do you think you are doing? No one leaves the room."

Conan turned and looked at the robber, placing a frightened yet determined face one. "But the boss wants me to save my friend and to do that I need supplies. The wound's bad," stammered Conan.

The guy's forehead scrunched his forehead in thought. He could ask the boss but that would mean living the 2nd floor completely unattended. He looked at Conan and nodded. Conan smirked. He knew that the guard thought Conan would not be able to do anything because he was just a kid. That was one of the benefits of being in a shrunken body.

Conan walked to the kitchen, aware of the robber tailing behind him. Conan pulled a stool so it rested right below the kitchen cabinets. Ignoring the robber who was muttering sullenly, he opened the cabinets and started searching for the first-aid kit. Once he found it, he took it out from the cabinet and jumped down from the stool. Dumping it on the counters, he took a bowl and placed it under a running tap. He then checked the first-aid kit.

"Gauze, aspirins and plaster?" Conan checked the first-aid kit loudly, "This is called a first-aid kit? I have to look through the office desks."

Conan looked at the robber who shrugged. Taking it as a yes, Conan turned off the tap and place the bowl of water inside the microwave. Placing a one minute timer, he turned on the microwave and collected the first-aid kit. He walked out of the kitchen, telling the robber to wait for the water. The robber hesitated before following Conan, not wanting to leave the kid alone. Conan ignored him again as he walked back into the hallway where there were many cubicles where most of the employees work at.

Not wasting any time, he searched for medicines. He pulled open drawers, rummaged through them and collected whatever medicine he could stuff into the first-aid kit. He found a bottle of anti-depressants, sore throat pills, allergy pills, painkillers and a bottle of Vodka. He dumped them all into the first-aid kit.

"Beep…Beep…"

"Water's ready. Please get it for me will you?" asked Conan, not looking up from the drawers.

The man grumbled and placed his can of _Red Bull _on one of the office tables. He then stumbled to the kitchen. As quickly as possible, Conan took a few anti-depressants and a few allergy pills and placed it into the can of caffeine. Then he picked up the first-aid kit, grabbed a pair of pliers from the drawer he was searching and ran to the main power control room. Crouching behind the large device, he pulled open the doors to the device. The circuit breakers to the computers and the silent alarms were activated.

"So that's how they shut down all the computers and alarms," Conan thought as he pulled out a wire from the many wires inside of the device.

The wire Conan pulled out was the Internet USB cable to the power controller. It supplies all computers with Internet access and it also have a higher frequency than the cell phone jammer. That means it has much more power than the cell phone jammer. Conan knocked out the back cover of his phone and used the pliers to tear open the insulation of the Internet wire. Connecting the inside wires to his SIM card and dialled Sato Miwako's number. Because of the Internet's power, he was able to call her despite the cell phone jammer.

"Hello?" Sato answered, "Sato here."

"It's Conan. I am in a hostage situation right now," Conan quickly whispered, "No, listen to me. I'm in the _Akita _Bank which is on 3rd Beika Street. I need you to come immediately but be undercover. The robbers said they would shoot three people when they see on cop so I need you to be careful. Be undercover and stay away from the bank. We are going to escape from the fire escape. Do not reveal yourself until we are all out. I got to go now!"

Hanging up, he took a deep breath. The police were alerted and he had began his counter attack. It is only a matter of time before the robbers are caught. Conan gritted his teeth. There are too many lives at stake here.

"I cannot fail!" Conan thought furiously, "I can't! The battle begins NOW!"

_**~(~)~**_

___**Translation:  
>Chotto: Wait<br>**__**Edogawa Conan, tantei sa: Edogawa Conan, a detective.**_

_**The next chapter would be filled with action! I made Conan seem more knowledgeable because I think that he is just as smart as I potray him. Be ready for the next chapter everyone!**_

_**Spoiler:  
>"So you are running around trying to play hero, huh kid?"<br>He raised the gun and pointed it at Conan.  
>"Goodbye then."<br>And fired.**_


	10. Chapter 9 Escape

**CHAPTER 9- Escape**

**The escape plan is in motion! Will everyone escape safely? Will their escape plan work? The battle between the bank robbers and hostages will continue in this chapter! **

**I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights reserved to Aoyama Gosho .**

_**Previously…**_

_**Yokoyama pulled out his gun from his pants and without looking at Genta, shot him in the arm.**_

_**One of the employees handed him a scissors. Conan tested the edge. It was sharp enough. Conan placed the sharp edge of the scissors on the upper left corner of the hole where the power outlet used to be. Straining his arms, he began to saw upwards. Gasps sounded.**_

_**"I will take care of the robbers.**__**"**_

_**As quickly as possible, Conan took a few anti-depressants and a few allergy pills and placed it into the can of caffeine**_

_**"It's Conan. I am in a hostage situation right now," Conan quickly whispered, "No, listen to me. I'm in the **__**Akita **__**Bank which is on 3rd Beika Street. I need you to come immediately but be undercover. The robbers said they would shoot three people when they see on cop so I need you to be careful. Be undercover and stay away from the bank. We are going to escape from the fire escape. Do not reveal yourself until we are all out. I got to go now!"**_

_**"I cannot fail!" Conan thought furiously, "I can't! The battle begins NOW!"**_

_**~(~)~**_

Conan crept out of the room, crouching low as he walked. The robber who went to collect the water was still in the kitchen. A yelp from the kitchen just proved Conan's suspicion that the robber tried to take out the bowl of water with his bare hands, burning his hands. Conan smirked. Then at the corner of his eyes he saw a black bag filled with tools. He turned and quickly made another attack on the robbers in his mind.

"Find some towels will you?" Conan shouted to the robber in the kitchen, trying to buy some time. He crept towards the bag. "There should be some in the kitchen."

More grumbles from the robber could be heard. Conan knelt beside the bag and pulled out the air hammer inside of it. Pulling out the bit, he took a toothpick and inserted it into the lock that holds the bit in place. He then placed back the bit and retuned the air hammer back to the bag. He stood up and walked back to the room looking nonchalant. He pushed open the door and hurried over to Genta.

The people who were sawing through the wall was alerted by Conan's entrance but visibly relaxed when Conan walked in. Conan ordered them to hide the hole with the office table as the robber would be coming soon.

He knelt beside Genta and gave him some painkillers, saying, "This is for the pain."

Genta took the pills gratefully, swallowing them in one gulp. His face was sweating and he was shaking from the pain of the wound. The wound has stopped bleeding so profusely. The robber pushed open the door and he handed Conan the towels and the water. He then stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind him. The people who was sawing through the wall started their work again. Conan immediately got to work.

First he gave a towel to Genta and told him to bite down on it hard. Genta gave Conan a scared look but complied. Taking the arm, he asked Ran to hold it up and taking a deep breath, he poured some of the Vodka onto Genta's wound. Genta thrashed, his screams muffled by the towel. Asking Ran to hold the arm still, he pulled out a pair of tweezers and began to pull out the bullet. Genta's face became red as he tried to smother his screams. Conan concentrated on the bullet. With a final tug, Conan pulled out the bullet from Genta's arm and Genta sighed with relief. Genta was about to take the towel out of his mouth when he saw Conan threading a needle. He whimpered and left the towel in his mouth. Ayumi and Mitsuhiko hovered nearby, watching with anxious, tear-stricken faces. Conan then began to stitch the wound. His fingers moved expertly and efficiently. In a few seconds, he had closed up the wound.

Genta sighed in relief, thankful that the 'surgery' was over. Conan gently bandaged his arm and the onlookers breathed a sigh of relief as well. They were half-afraid that Conan would make the wound worse.

"How much progress?" Conan asked the people at the wall as he was wiping his hands with the towels.

"We sawed through the first layer of the wall already. We are already starting on the second layer. It's a bit tougher than the first. We need at least 30 minutes," reported one of them.

"Keep working," Conan said.

Then one of the man at the door warned, "They are coming."

A flurry of actions took place. The office table was dragged back in place, people began to move to the back of the room. They put on a depressed and fearful look on their faces but their eyes were filled with confidence and hope. The watchmen moved away from the door and Conan packed his first-aid kit. He knew that they needed him. Taking a quick glance at Genta, he got ready for the robbers to come.

Then the door of the room was slammed open, nearly breaking the door of its hinges. Ito strode into the room and swept the room with his eyes, looking for any faults. His glare made the people more frightened much to the robber's delight. His eyes rested on Genta who was now alright and his eyes moved to Conan who was crouching on the floor, looking at him.

Pointing his gun at Conan, he spat out, "Hey kid. Not bad. You have some skill. That's good because we need your expertise downstairs. Follow me."

Turning around, he strode out of the room. With a meaningful look to everyone, Conan picked up his bag and followed Ito, closing the door carefully behind him. He noticed that the robber who followed him to the kitchen had resumed drinking his _Red Bull_, much to the Conan's delight. It will be only a matter of time before everything is over. He rushed down the stairs and saw that the robbers were already clearing out the vaults. They were dumping cash into large bags. Conan passed the vaults and into a deserted hallway. Conan then saw the casualty- the victim of the tampered air hammer.

His right leg was busted. The bit of the air hammer had went through the thigh of his left leg. The robber was breathing heavily and he looked up at Conan who was staring at the wound. The robber was one of the two who had pulled on the guise of a security guard.

Pretending to not know what happened, Conan asked, looking at the boss, "What happened?"

"The bit of the hammer shot into his leg," Yokoyama said sullenly, "I want you to save him. If you can't save him, you'll die."

Conan knelt beside the man and said to him, "I am going to give you something for the pain alright?"

Conan reached into the first-aid bag and took out the bottle of allergy pills. He placed five of the pills into the outstretched hand of the man, knowing fully the effects of over dosage of diphenhydramine was dizziness and light-headedness before fainting due to lack of oxygen. The robber took the meds without any thought, trusting Conan completely. Conan then looked at the wound. The bit was pulled out and the wound was bleeding heavily.

Conan turned to the boss and said, "I need to use your liquid nitrogen gun to clot the wound."

Yokoyama narrowed his eyes and said angrily, "No! Absolutely not!"

"Do you want him to live or not? If you do, let me use the liquid nitrogen gun and help me to tie his leg right below the wound," Conan countered, much to the frustration of Yokoyama.

Yokoyama instructed Ito to inspect the hostages and left to get the liquid nitrogen gun. When he returned, he placed his gun down, gave the towel to Conan before taking the cloth that Conan handed him to tie up the leg. Conan quickly inserted the nozzle of the nitrogen gun into Yokoyama's gun, cooling the inside metal of the his gun. All this when unnoticed by Yokoyama. He then pulled the nozzle out and aimed at the wound before spraying the liquid nitrogen onto it. The wound froze immediately and the robber screamed in pain. When Conan saw that the bleeding stopped, he quickly bandaged his leg.

Yokoyama turned to look at Conan, his eyes showing much surprise, "You're good kid. You say your father is a doctor? How would a doctor know such surgery skills that should belong to the field?" he asked.

Conan answered easily, prepared for the question, "He is an army doctor."

Nodding to himself, Yokoyama told Conan to return to the conference room. Conan collected his first-aid kit and walked upstairs. He walked slowly, letting the robber who gave him the towels earlier follow him. The robber was walking unsteadily and Conan knew that the combination of meds and caffeine was working. The mixture never works well and makes the consumer's blood to transfer oxygen to the brain. This caused dizziness and it also makes the consumer very easy to knock out.

Conan increased his pace and walked into the kitchen. He quickly wringed a towel and climbed onto the table beside the entrance. He held one end of the rope-like towel in each hand. He flattened himself against the wall, waiting for the robber to enter the kitchen and into his trap.

The robber stumbled into the entrance, too dizzy to notice Conan right beside him. Conan threw the towel around his neck and jumped onto the robber's back. The robber, too shocked and too weak to throw Conan off could only lift his gun to shoot at Conan. Conan noticed the gun and quickly used one hand to push it away, using only one hand to strangle the robber. The robber, now scared began to shoot at the carpeted floor. The silencer on his gun muffled the sounds of the shots while the carpet on the floor swallowed the sound of the bullets piercing through it. The robber shot out four shots before his eyes flickered. His knees gave way and he fell, face first onto the floor, completely unconscious.

Conan breathed heavily. His small body couldn't take too much physical exertion. He threw aside the towel and pulled the gun away from the grasp of the fallen man. Conan checked the cartridge of the gun. There were only two available shots left. Conan tucked it into the back of his pants and covered it with his shirt. The gun might be useful later.

After pushing the robber to the side of the kitchen so that the robber could not be seen from the outside, Conan took the first-aid bag and walked out of the kitchen as though nothing happened. Conan first checked the door of the room with the fire exit. It's locked. Conan then went into the room, hoping that the escape route was not discovered by Ito. However, Conan saw a much bigger commotion inside the room.

"Why did you need to shoot our friend, _oji-san_?" shouted Mitsuhiko.

Conan stood at the doorway, shocked beyond words. Mitsuhiko and Ayumi were standing in front of the robber, their hands on their hips. They were glaring at Ito and Ito was not amused at all. He snarled at the two kids and Mitsuhiko ran forward to kick the man in the shin.

Ito roared in pain and hopped around on one foot, while his hands held his hurting shin. Mitsuhiko and Ayumi then threw themselves onto the other leg and toppled Ito down. Both of them began to punch Ito with their small fists. Conan would have laughed out loud if the situation was not so serious. Conan moved forward to stop them but was held in his tracks by Yokoyama rushing up the stairs. Yokoyama wasted no time to push past Conan and he pulled the two struggling kids away from Ito. He threw Ayumi and Mitsuhiko to the side of the room and with a snarl, pulled out his gun and pointed it at them.

"Why are kids so pesky these days?" he said venomously. Behind him, Ito stood up shakily.

"I said that anyone who tried to play hero will die!" Yokoyama shouted, much to the panic of everyone.

Conan couldn't stop himself. He ran forward and stepped in between the gun and the two frightened children. He stared at the maddened boss, hoping that the boss would leave Ayumi and Mitsuhiko alone.

"Move kid!" shouted Yokoyama.

Conan refused to budge. His heart was hammering against his chest so hard that Conan was surprised that his ribs weren't broken by the impact.

"So you are running around trying to play hero, kid?"

He raised the gun and pointed it at Conan.

"Goodbye then."

And fired.

"ARGH!"

The gun had exploded when he pulled the trigger. Metal shards flew everywhere and Conan let go of his held breath. He was expecting for the gun to explode because he had cooled the metal of the gun. When metal that is cooled suddenly heated up, it explodes. Conan had cooled the gun for an emergency.

Yokoyama shouted at Ito, "Shoot them!"

Ito nodded and pointed his gun at Conan who again didn't budge. Conan just said calmly, "I am the only one who can save your hand right now. There are metal shards in your hand and you might be gushing out arterial blood. If you are, you might not survive. Kill me and you kill yourself. And I am only going to help you if you don't kill these two kids."

Yokoyama glared at Conan and Conan calmly looked back at him. Cursing he told Ito to lower his gun.

"Come on then!" he shouted at Conan and left the room, followed by Ito.

Conan turned to glower at Ayumi and Mitsuhiko who were clutching each other in fright. He then turned around and stamped out of the room as well. The boss was leaning against an office desk. Conan began his work immediately. He cleaned the wound and pulled out all the shards, uncaring of the pain that Yokoyama was facing. Yokoyama yelled in pain and yelped when Conan stitched up the wound.

Conan then bandaged the hand and asked, "Do you need any painkillers?"

Yokoyama snapped out, "Of course I do! Try blowing your hand off and see if you need meds!"

Conan reached into the bag and pulled out the bottle of sore throat pills. He poured five pills into the hand of the boss and the boss took it.

Conan smirked inwardly. Acetaminophen, the component inside the sore throat pills, are extremely dangerous in high doses. While small doses cure sore throat and colds, high doses damages the liver as a long-time effect. But the most immediate effect of over dosage would be a gastric attack. Yokoyama would have a lot of stomach problems soon.

Yokoyama yelled at Conan to return to the conference room and Conan willingly did so. He entered the room and closed the door behind him, waiting for Yokoyama to leave the second floor. He then turned and glared at the Detective Boys.

"What did you think you guys were doing?" snapped Conan. He was extremely furious at the Detective Boys childish acts. They could have got people killed. They could have been killed.

Ayumi shuffled her feet together, embarrassed. Mitsuhiko however defended himself, "I wanted to help you! It's unfair that you can take care of the robbers while we sit here doing nothing!"

Conan controlled his breathing. Unable to take it any longer, he yelled at them, "BAKA! I had it all under control! Why do you need to try and mess it up?"

"We're sorry Conan-kun," Ayumi whimpered. Her eyes were filling with tears dangerously fast. Conan noticed it and stifled down another urge to shout at them. Everyone was still safe.

"We're through!"

The jubilant shout attracted everyone's attention. The people at the wall were standing up proudly and Conan smiled widely when he saw the large hole in the wall. They could free themselves now.

"All right then! Everyone move into the next room quickly!"

They began to crawl into the next room. Two of the male employees were carrying the still unconscious manager of the bank. Conan stayed behind to inspect the robbers. The unconscious robber in the kitchen was still unmoving while no one had came up the stairs. If all goes well, everything will be over within a few minutes time.

"Conan!"

Ran's voice brought him back to earth. Conan turned and saw Ran motioning for him to enter the next room from the hole. Conan crawled into the next room which was already packed with people.

"What's wrong, Ran-neechan?" asked Conan.

"That."

Conan looked at the direction of her pointed finger. She was pointing at the fire escape. But there was something unexpected there.

A heavy lock was installed on the metal door. And at the side of the door, a keypad was installed indicating that a pass code was needed to open the door. Conan's blood ran cold. This was completely unexpected. Is their escape plan cut off because of the security measures on the door?

"Anyone know the pass code for the door?" Conan asked hopefully to the room at large.

Everyone shook their head numbly. Conan was shocked beyond words. He was so sure that they would be able to leave through the fire escape. But now… There was no way out. Conan stared at the keypad and the lock. He could shoot out the lock but the keypad was the problem. Shooting it will just seal the door forever. There was no choice except to try to crack the code.

Then Conan heard voices. They were coming up the stairs. Conan's hands began to shake. Is this the end of their escape route? Is death the only way out now?

Everyone was looking at him for solutions to their predicaments. He had got them this far. But for the first time ever, Conan couldn't think up for a solution.

_**~(~)~**_

**Go Conan! You can do it! Will Conan be able to figure out the pass code for the door before it's too late? Next chapter would be on their desperate escape! The clock's ticking and if they couldn't get out in time, death is their destination! Stick around for the next chapter for the conclusion of the nerve-wrecking escape! Please review!**


	11. Chapter 10 Pass code

**CHAPTER 10- Pass code**

**The clock's ticking! Conan and the others are trapped! What will happen to them? To those who had reviewed, thank you very much! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan. As always, all rights go to Aoyama Gosho.**

_**Previously….**_

_**His right leg was busted. The bit of the air hammer had went through the thigh of his left leg. The robber was breathing heavily and he looked up at Conan who was staring at the wound. The robber was one of the two who had pulled on the guise of a security guard.**_

_**The robber stumbled into the entrance, too dizzy to notice Conan right beside him. Conan threw the towel around his neck and jumped onto the robber's back. The robber, too shocked and too weak to throw Conan off could only lift his gun to shoot at Conan. Conan noticed the gun and quickly used one hand to push it away, using only one hand to strangle the robber. The robber, now scared began to shoot at the carpeted floor. The silencer on his gun muffled the sounds of the shots while the carpet on the floor swallowed the sound of the bullets piercing through it. The robber shot out four shots before his eyes flickered. His knees gave way and he fell, face first onto the floor, completely unconscious.**_

_**The gun had exploded when he pulled the trigger. Metal shards flew everywhere and Conan let go of his held breath. He was expecting for the gun to explode because he had cooled the metal of the gun. When metal that is cooled suddenly heated up, it explodes. Conan had cooled the gun for an emergency.**_

_**"We're through!"**_

_**The jubilant shout attracted everyone's attention. The people at the wall were standing up proudly and Conan smiled widely when he saw the large hole in the wall. They could free themselves now.**_

_**"What's wrong, Ran-neechan?" asked Conan.**_

_**A heavy lock was installed on the metal door. And at the side of the door, a keypad was installed indicating that a pass code was needed to open the door. Conan's blood ran cold. This was completely unexpected. Is their escape plan cut off because of the security measures on the door?**_

_**"Anyone know the pass code for the door?" Conan asked hopefully to the room at large.**_

_**Everyone shook their head numbly.**_

_**Everyone was looking at him for solutions to their predicaments. He had got them this far. But for the first time ever, Conan couldn't think up for a solution.**_

_**~(~)~**_

Conan could feel the stares of everyone on him. Conan's heart thumped harder against his chest. His eyes was fixed on the inconvenient key pad, the only thing that stood in their way from escaping. The lock was easy to break but the key pad is not. The door is made of reinforced steel, making it almost impossible to break just by using human strength.

"Why does no one know about the security measures on the fire escape door?" Conan asked. He couldn't believe that no one knew about such important details.

"The boss didn't say anything," said an employee, indicating the unconscious manager of the bank, "We didn't have the need to look into this room so we had no idea."

"Who installed the key pad?" Conan asked.

"The manager," someone else answered.

"Conan-kun," whispered Ran. Her eyes were wide with fear. Actually, everyone's eyes were big with fear. Conan gritted his teeth. He wasn't going to let anyone die. Not when he can help it.

Conan pushed forward and went closer to the key pad to inspect it. It was an ordinary keypad that is connected to the Modular Alarm System of the bank. That makes the code a 4 digit number. Conan could try out every 4 digit number possible but that would take some time. The clock's ticking and the robbers were already up the stairs. There wasn't much time left until one of the robber come to inspect on them. Conan turned. He needed to instruct everyone to return to the conference room.

"Damn… I'm having a stomach ache."

Conan halted. Yokoyama's voice was extremely close, meaning he was on the second floor. He heard footsteps walking away from them and a door slamming.

"Wait for me Ito."

Grumbles from Ito could be heard. No more footsteps could be heard. Conan breathed a sigh of relief. The medication he gave Yokoyama worked like a charm. Yokoyama would be staying in the toilet for a very long time.

Conan decided to press for more answers. "Does any of you know anything, anything at all that could lead to the pass code? Anything would do," Conan asked.

Many shook their heads mutely. Conan felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He was slowly losing hope. If no one knew, then he has no choice but to try out every code possible.

"I think there's something."

Conan's head snapped to the speaker. A woman in her late twenties was rubbing her chin thoughtfully. She was apparently thinking really hard.

"Who are you?" asked Conan.

"I'm the assistant manager of this bank," she answered.

"Well, what is it?" Conan asked impatiently. Yokoyama might be in the toilet for some time but that didn't guarantee that Ito wouldn't check on them. And Ito was the robber who has a trigger-happy personality. Conan wouldn't want him to walk into the room and realising that they had all went through the hole in the wall. It would lead Ito sticking his gun through the hole and shooting randomly.

"Well, I was just thinking about the day the boss brought his teenage son here," she answered thoughtfully, "his son played in this room then. When I came in to check on the boy, there wasn't any keypad or lock on the fire escape. When I left the boy, the manager came into the room with a box and I heard him say something like 'fix this… you can put in your own password'. I thought he was giving his son a broken toy or something. The boss then left after handing the boy the box. The boy never came out for quite some time from the room. I think the boy installed the lock and keypad," she ended.

"What's the son's name?" Conan asked desperately.

"Atsuro," the woman replied, "Kihara Atsuro. He's extremely talented in programming. The boss always boast about his son's achievements in programming."

"Ah, Atsuro-kun," said another employee, "He's quite famous in the programming forum I'm in. He calls himself 10BIT in there. He is hailed as a genius by some programmers."

Something in Conan's mind clicked. 10BIT? Why does it sound so important to him? So this Kihara Atsuro is a programmer and he was the one who installed the key pad? Then Atsuro would know the pass code! But Conan can't call him as he need to go out into the hallway. Ito was still there. Yokoyama's moans could still be heard.

10BIT. That's Atsuro's handle in the forum. His brain whirled with a sudden realisation. Conan smiled. He might have found the code to the 4 digit number.

"Conan-kun, did you find out what's the code?" Ayumi asked eagerly, noticing the smile on Conan's face.

"I think I might have a possible answer," Conan replied, not wanting to get their hopes up. This was only a speculation but it was the only 4 digit code that jumped out from the rest of the possible numbers.

"How do you figure it out from hearing a name?" Mitsuhiko asked curiously.

"Well, Atsuro's handle in the forums he's in is 10BIT right?" Conan began explaining. Everyone nodded slowly, still unsure what that means. "That could be a number."

"What do you mean, Conan-kun?" asked Mitsuhiko, "How can that be a number?"

"Bit is the basic unit of information in computing and telecommunications. There are two distinct states for bit, 0 and 1," Conan started.

"Two distinct states?" repeated Ran, "So 10bits is 2 times 10?"

"Nope," Conan replied, shaking his head. "Bits are not simple multiplication, Ran-neechan. They are binary notation. That means 10bits is not 2 times 10. It's 2 to the power of 10," Conan explained easily.

"What's 2 to the power of 10?" Ayumi asked.

"It's 1024," Conan replied easily. He was a mathematics whiz. He could calculate large numbers in his head without breaking a sweat.

"So the code is 1024!" Mitsuhiko cheered.

"Wrong," Conan said.

Everyone who was looking happy for a second, looked at Conan with shock. Conan turned to face the keypad. The teenager who installed the keypad was a genius, Conan thought. No one would guess that the code to the door is his handle. And even if they did figure out that 10bits is 1024, they wouldn't be able to get through the door because 1024 isn't the password.

Conan stood on his tiptoes and explained, "In programming, numbers are counted from 0. So the largest number 10bits could contain is 1," Conan pressed one, "0…" pressed zero, "2…" pressed two, "3…"

Conan punched in the last number and stood back. The keypad's light indicator turned green, showing that the code was right. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The keypad problem was done. Now it's just the lock to worry about.

"Conan-kun," Ran said.

Turning around to face her, he asked, "Yeah, Ran-neechan?"

"How do you know about programming?" Ran asked, her eyes wide with wonder. "No ordinary would know about bits and bits starting from zero. How did you know?"

Conan grimaced. He shown too much of his former self again. "Umm…" Conan muttered, "Shinichi-niichan taught me!" Conan lied, hoping that Ran would believe him.

"What on earth has Shinichi been teaching you?" Ran muttered sullenly, accepting Conan's lie.

"Argh… My stomach hurts Ito. Thank god I got it all out already."

Conan's head snapped to face the door of the room. Footsteps could be heard and Conan quickly asked everyone to stand back. The keypad problem was done. Now it's just the lock. There was no time to pick the lock so Conan had to do the next best thing. Shoot it.

Conan whispered to everyone, "Once I get rid of the lock, I want everyone to rush out as quickly as possible and get to the bottom as fast as possible."

"Co…Conan-kun," Ayumi stammered, "What are you going to do?"

Wasting no time, Conan pulled the gun from the back of his pants and aimed at the lock. Everyone gasped at the sight of the gun. Satisfied that the gun was pointed at the lock, Conan shot. The silencer of the gun muffled the sound of the gunshot. The bullet was shot out and broke through the lock. Conan's accuracy was as perfect as always. The lock and the broken pieces fell to the floor with a loud thud.

"What's that sound?"

Everyone began to swarm to the now-open fire escape. Conan was jostled left and right because of his small physique. Pushing forward, he managed to get out. He ran with the rest of the hostages down the fire escape as fast as possible.

"There's a hole in the wall Yokoyama!"

Conan heard Ito scream. Conan jumped the last few steps and breathed a sigh of relief. Around him, people were all breathing heavily and running as far as possible from the bank. Conan searched the crowd. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were among the crowd. But where's Ran? He desperately searched the mass of people, hoping that Ran would be among the crowd.

"AH!"

Conan spun around.

"RAN!"

At the 2nd floor of the staircase, Ran was screaming and Ito was holding on to her. His arm was around her neck and his gun, a gun that wasn't spoilt in any way, was pressing against Ran's temple. Conan stared at him in shock, unable to believe that Ran wasn't able to get away when everyone else did.

"Drop the gun!"

Sato's scream pierced through the air. Conan turned to find police officers, all dressed in ordinary civilians clothing, appearing from every corner. Their guns were out and pointed at the robber who was still holding onto Ran. He snarled and pressed his gun harder against her temple, causing Ran to whimper. His hold was fierce. Ran, even with her prowess couldn't break through. She was already struggling so hard but Ito was much stronger.

"RAN!" Kogoro's distressed yell could be heard. Conan knew he was being held back by some police officer's by now.

Tightening his grip around Ran's neck, he shouted, "Drop your guns or I will shoot her! Unless you want her to die, drop your guns and let us walk out of here!"

Conan sensed hesitation within the police force. No matter what, the police's first priority was to put the lives of the people first. They were gritting their teeth and although their guns were still levelled to the robber, their hands were shaking.

Sato shouted back at the robber, "You are surrounded! If you drop your gun and let the girl go, you will receive a lighter sentence!"

Ito laughed insanely. He tightened his grip and Ran choked. The compression against her throat was cutting of her blood supply to the brain. Ran struggled more fiercely and Conan narrowed his eyes. He wasn't going to let Ran be hurt.

He knelt and turned on the power of his shoes. Turning to maximum, he screamed, "GO!" and kicked a small stone beside him. The stone, whizzed through the air at the speed of light and smashed right into the forehead of Ito. Even though most of his face was covered by Ran's head and hair, Conan's aim was faultless. It hit right into the middle Ito's forehead, drawing blood due to the insane amount of power Conan placed into his kick. He fell backwards and his arm flopped away from Ran and onto the floor beside him. Ran, once free, raced down the stairs and into her father's arms.

"Drop your gun mister!" A sudden shout from Sato alerted everyone.

Conan turned to face the fire escape door again. Yokoyama was standing there, a hard expression written all over his face. A gun was pointed at his head, held by his unwounded hand. Conan knew he was going to kill himself. Having no chance of escaping, he was going to escape through death. Yokoyama closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Conan raised the gun he was still holding onto. There was still one more bullet left and that was enough. Conan's hand shot up and he pressed the trigger of the gun, releasing the final bullet. The bullet sped through the air, piercing through Yokoyama's hand, making him drop the gun. He screamed the same scream he did earlier and bowed over to press against the newly made wound, again caused by Conan.

Sato wasted no time and dashed up the stairs. When she reached the injured robber, the robber fell to his knees, knowing that he was cornered. Sato handcuffed him quickly and brought him down.

"Conan-kun!"

Conan turned and smiled. The Detective Boys were running towards him. Ayumi's eyes were filled with tears and they jumped onto him, hugging him fiercely. Ayumi hugged him tight and Conan returned her hug. He was glad that they were safe. When they stepped back to let him breathe, Ayumi burst into tears.

"We are so sorry that we were acting so terribly the past few days!" Ayumi spluttered out, in midst of her tears. Mitsuhiko and Genta nodded and whispered a "Sorry" and looked away, embarrassed by their actions.

Conan smiled widely. They were safe and the Detective Boys were now talking to him. He hugged Ayumi and smiled at the rest. "It's alright," Conan assured them, "I have no hard feelings. I understand why you acted cold with me. It's alright."

They all rushed forward to hug Conan again. Ayumi wailed out more apologies. A police officer came towards them and motioned to the gun that Conan was still holding onto. Conan freed the arm from the tight hugs he was receiving and handed the gun to the police officer.

"It's over…" Conan thought, watching the robbers entering the police car. All the robbers were collected by the police and those were wounded were sent away to the hospital with a police guard. "The bank's robbery is over…."

Conan allowed himself to fall into the warmth of the hugs. He had been too tensed this past few days and he had been too focused on Gin and Vodka. He looked at Ayumi and noticed her tears. He looked at Genta and saw his wounded arm. He looked at Mitsuhiko and observed his apologetic face.

Conan embraced all of them and thought, his mind slightly peaceful, "I will never let anything happen to them…."

_**~(~)~**_

**Done! Sorry it took so long. Research was killing me! For those who written read and commented, thank you very much! Please review this chapter! Next chapter will be coming real soon so stick around to find out what happen! The ending of this part of the series Impending Doom is nearing. Keep reading to find out what's going to happen next! :) **


	12. Chapter 11 Him and Her

**CHAPTER 11- Him and Her **

**11****th**** chapter to this story! Thank you all for your reviews! **

_**~(~)~**_

Policemen were swarming in and out of the doors. Conan sat impatiently, fidgeting frequently. The hostages were all gathered in the police headquarters for their statements and questioning. Conan was sitting on a chair, waiting for him to be called and questioned. Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were questioned before him and their anxious parents came to hustle them back home. So now, he was alone. Even Ran was gone. Kogoro had brought her to the hospital for a checkup.

The next witness to the robbery walked out of the interrogation room and Conan stood up, ready to walk into the room as soon as his name was called. Then, another name was called and the owner of that name entered the room, closing the door behind him. Conan slumped back into his seat and sighed. He was tired. Too much had happened and he needed the rest that he lacked in. Conan rubbed his eyes wearily. He stared at the clock. It's already 5pm.

Conan waited and waited. His name wasn't called at all. The rest of the hostages were called into the interrogation room and one by one, they left. Soon enough, Conan was the last of the group of witnesses. By the time Conan was called, it was already 7pm. Conan was tired beyond words. He stumbled into the interrogation room and was faced by a group of policemen. Conan sighed. The questioning would take very long indeed.

Conan climbed onto the chair and slumped into it. The questioning began. Inspector Megure shot all kinds of questions to Conan and Conan answered them as quickly as possible. He wanted to go home.

After 30 minutes of questioning, Inspector Megure finally allowed him to leave. Conan jumped down from the chair, all to happy to leave. "_Chotto_," Megure said, "How did you know?"

Conan turned to face him. "Know what?" Conan asked.

"How do you know how to do all the things you did?" Megure asked him again, watching Conan. All the policemen in the room faced him as well, faces full of wonder.

Conan sighed. He was really worn out and he still have to put on an act. "I learned it from Shinichi-niichan and the TV!" Conan answered, hoping that the answer would be enough to satisfy their curiosity.

"Honestly, what has Kudou-kun been teaching you?" Megure muttered, shaking his head. They looked satisfied with Conan's explanation so he left the room, shutting the door behind him.

Once outside, he breathed a sigh of relief. Now he could return back to Ran's home. He never considered Ran's apartment as 'home'. But sadly, it's home for now. Once the Organization is brought down and Conan got his hands on the antidote, he could finally return to his original form. He could finally go back living the life of Kudou Shinichi. Conan walked out of the police headquarters, too absorbed into his own thoughts.

"HONK!"

A sudden honk startled Conan, making him jump slightly. Looking around, he noticed the _hakase's _yellow Beetle parked in front of the headquarters. The _hakase _waved at him and Conan walked over to the car.

Grateful that there was a ride back, Conan opened the front seat door and jumped into it. "Thanks _Agasa-hakase_," Conan thanked him, "When did you get back?"

"Shinichi-kun!" Agasa shouted, causing Conan to start up in shock, "Ai-kun's in the hospital!"

"_Nani?_" Conan shouted back. Haibara's in the hospital. Suddenly, he felt very awake and focused. "What happened?" Conan asked urgently.

"She fell down in the toilet and her head hit the sink. She lost consciousness after that and lost a lot of blood. When I returned a few hours ago, she was still in the toilet!" Agasa said unhappily.

Conan's eyes widened in shock. "Is she ok?" Conan asked again, his mouth dry from fear and shock.

Agasa's grave eyes met his fearful eyes. "She's in a coma right now, Shinichi-kun," Agasa said sadly, "It's not known when she will wake up. She was sick and she lost of blood. And there was trauma to the head. She will not wake up soon, so said the doctor."

Coma? Conan began to shake in fear. Haibara's in a coma? Why? How did this happen? The last time Conan saw her, she screamed at him. Telling him to get lost. And Conan didn't apologise. He never saw her again after that. The walls of reality was crashing around Conan, burying him. Conan was scared. For the first time, he felt true, complete fear.

"Get to the hospital," Conan said, his voice emotionless. His eyes were wide as they stared into his lap. They were without any emotions at all. "Now."

Agasa immediately began to drive to the hospital. He looked to Conan and felt concern for the young boy sitting beside him. Conan was still, he had stopped shaking. His eyes were unseeing, emotionless. Dead. It wasn't like Shinichi. Shinichi or Conan was full of life and sarcasm. He was always searching for knowledge just like his father, mischievous, just like his mother. He was never quiet unless it concerns a case. But now… Conan was a still as death.

The car drove into the underground parking lot of Haido Central Hospital and as soon as the car was parked, Conan jumped out of the car. He rushed to the reception area, ignoring the _hakase _protests against Conan running. Conan ran straight to the lobby and raced to the nurse at the reception desk.

"Excuse me," Conan said urgently, "Can you tell me which room Haibara Ai is in?"

The nurse smiled at him and looked through the list of patients. "She's in ward 200," she said and Conan raced off after saying a quick, "_Arigato."_

Conan raced to the elevator and impatiently waited for the elevator to reach the third story where ward 200 is. As soon as the doors open, Conan dashed out, dodging nurses and visitors left and right. His eyes were focused on the door of ward 200, which was at the furthest end of the corridor. Once he reached the door, he pulled in open.

Haibara was there. She was tucked inside her bed, still as death. Her only movements were her chest moving up and down as she took in the precious air into her lungs. Her nose and mouth were covered by the respirator mask to aid her in her breathing. Her eyes were shut and her face was slack. The usual tautness wasn't there anymore.

Conan stood in the doorway, his eyes registering the pitiful sight in front of him. He released the breath he was holding unconsciously. His eyes blinked, once, twice, hoping that the reality would change when he closed his eyes and opened them. His heart felt a dull ache of concern and worry as well as unknown feeling that he had never felt before. What was it? His lips began to tremble and his eyes started to burn.

He walked slowly to the side of the bed, trying to take as much time as possible so he wouldn't need to face Haibara's dead-like body. To look into her face that might never look at him like how she usually did before. Conan reached the foot of the bed and lowered his eyes to the floor, not wanting to look at Haibara. In his heart, he prayed that she would wake up and say something witty and sarcastic as she usually do. He waited, waited for a whisper, for a movement, anything that would break the fragile reality of Haibara in a coma. Anything would do.

He waited and waited but nothing came. There was no sudden movements, there was no whisper calling out his name. His heart sunk into great despair. Reality was now staring at him right in the face, calling out to him to accept the truth. To accept the one truth that he was so concerned about revealing. There is only one truth, he always said. But why… Why must the truth be this?

Conan raised his head, slowly, hesitantly. His eyes roamed over Haibara, taking in her condition. She was so small in the oversized bed that was meant for adults. She barely took up half of it. Her face lost all its energy. Her reddish blonde hair was as neat as usual. Her eyes were closed, not allowing Conan to look into her eyes. Her breathing was slow and easy. A blanket was pulled up to her stomach, keeping her warm. Her hands were relaxed at her sides, halfway into clenching into fists.

Conan raised his hand and hesitantly pulled her fingers apart and locked his fingers between hers. Her hands were warm, an indication that she was still alive. Conan gave her hand a light squeeze, hoping that she would return it. She didn't. Conan looked at her face and his heart fell into a deep pit of depression. Will she ever wake up? And if she does wake up soon, will she forgive him? Why did they have a fight when she had just began to be more open and more jovial? Before they had that fight, they were more closer than they had ever been. She laughed and smiled more often, finally believing that she belonged. A part of the Detective Boys. A part of him. That fight destroyed everything. She hated him now and he never had the chance to apologise before she fell into this deep, dreamless slumber. She is now unreachable.

Conan stared into her face and made a decision. He will apologise to her when she wakes up. "I'll destroy the Organization for you, Haibara…." He whispered, his voice breathy and full of emotions, "So that when you wake up, you need not live in fear anymore. I'll bring them down. For both of us."

_**~(~)~**_

**Conan and Ai forever! I know I'm too focused on his feelings but I want to make it seem like he really cared about her. Sorry, I am a AiCon fan. For now, Ai is in a coma and Conan's had strengthened his resolve to find and destroy the Black Organization! Will Ai wake up to find the B.O gone so she could live in peace? Next chapter is the last chapter of Marked: Part 1 of the Impending Doom series! Stick around to find how this part ends! Review please! :) **

_**Translation: **_

_**Chotto- Wait.  
><strong>__**Hakase- professor.  
><strong>__**Nani?- What?  
><strong>__**Arigato- Thank you. **_


	13. Chapter 12 Next Foot Forward

**CHAPTER 12- Next foot forward**

**This is the last chapter for this story but there is going to be an epilogue after this. For those who reviewed, THANK YOU! I am really grateful for all the comments and I really hope you will continue reading the next story and the 2****nd**** part of the series Impending Doom.**

**To tantei no hime: I didn't say that the woman was Vermouth. The woman was an OC. Sorry if I wasn't clear on that.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Detective Conan. All rights go to Aoyama Gosho. No copyright infringement intended. **

_**~(~)~**_

_***in some building***_

"That was something wasn't it?"

Gin sat back in his favourite armchair and smiled evilly. He was dressed in a suit, very unlike his usual clothes. A smart looking black pair of trousers, coat and tie followed by a white shirt. He was told to wear different colours when he went under disguise. That's why he wore a white shirt. If given the choice, he would remain in his favourite black garments. Beside him on a table, a torn plastic mask laid there. He had stolen one of Vermouth's countless disguises for the test.

Vodka was sitting opposite him. He was still in shock. He was dressed in a similar suit as well and his mask was still gripped tightly in his fists. His eyes were wide with complete wonder. Well, Gin couldn't know for sure as his eyes were hidden behind those dark sunglasses that Vodka always wear. The only indication that Vodka's eyes were wide open were his eyebrows. They had moved upwards a little.

"_Aniki_... I don't believe it…" Vodka began, whispering.

"What's so hard to believe?" Gin asked, "It happened right in front of our eyes."

Vodka gulped nervously, "He did better than what we thought."

"Isn't that good?" Gin replied impatiently, "He exceeded my expectations and the Boss's as well. That is more than enough to me."

"Don't you think he's a little too smart for a 7 year old boy?" Vodka countered, "The gun, the wall, the code! It's too advanced even for an adult! To think that a kid would know that much…." Vodka left it hanging.

"I know but that what makes him perfect," Gin replied. He lit another cigarette and drew a huge breath of the smoke. "Imagine. If he is this good when he's young, imagine what he would be when he grows up. He'll be unstoppable. That's why we need him. If he joins our enemies, we would be at the losing end. No way I am going to let that happen."

Gin smiled. "What a great coincidence. To be actually be caught in the same bank robbery as that kid. Heh, I thought the test we wanted to give to him was hard enough but the bank robbery was even harder and he actually managed to get everyone out alive. Not an easy feat to do. To think we would see him in action because we went to the bank to withdraw some money. God is surely on our side," Gin laughed.

Vodka gulped again. He couldn't shake the feeling that the boy was someone that should be feared. The way the kid held the gun-it was as though he had training before. The kid also claimed that he had learned his nifty tricks from a certain 'Shinichi-niichan'. Vodka had a feeling he knew who this 'Shinichi-niichan' is, wait- _was. _The high-school brat is dead.

Gin fished into his coat pocket and pulled out a cell phone. He dialled in a number. Beep.. Bop… Bip… Beep…. The melody of '_Nanatsu no Ko_' was dialled in the simple 'beeps' of a cell phone.

"Hello, it's me," Gin said as soon as the call was answered, "I found someone that you might like…. Boss."

_***Mouri Detective Agency***_

Conan walked out of the room, his head down. He walked over to the table and sat. Pulling the bowl of rice towards him, he began to eat his meal in silence. He chewed and swallowed. He never spoke.

Ran and Kogoro exchanged glances. It has been three days. Three days since they saw Conan smiled. Conan didn't speak, he didn't smile. He merely walked around aimlessly or shut himself in the room. His eyes didn't held a shred of emotion in them. The usual, lively blue eyes were as cold and hard as stone. Ever since he returned from the hospital after visiting Haibara, he seemed to have lost his soul.

Ran sighed, looking at Conan whose only focus was on his food. She knew that Conan and Ai-chan had a special relationship. They were always together, never once have they been separated if they can't help it. They were always whispering to each other, sharing secrets that were for both their ears only. Now Ai-chan was in a coma and he had lost all life. He was like a ghost, slipping in and out of the room unnoticed and silent.

Kogoro, unable to stand the silence of the company stood and strode over to the coffee table. He picked up the letters and began to look through them with disinterest. Bills, advertisement, bills again and at the bottom of the pile of letters, a professional looking peach-coloured envelope attracted Kogoro's eye. The front of the envelope stated 'Edogawa Conan' in a spidery handwriting. Kogoro flipped it over and saw a seal at the back of it.

Kogoro held out the envelope to Conan who was still sitting at the table. "Hey, Conan," called Kogoro, "A letter just came for you."

Conan raised his head and looked at Kogoro. He stood up and retrieved the letter from Kogoro and went back to the table. He tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter. Ran and Kogoro looked over his shoulders, interested to what the letter says.

The letter states:

_**Dear Edogawa Conan,**_

_**We are pleased to inform you that you are chosen as one of the candidates for Japan International School 's(JIS) Scholarship Programme. JIS is an elite school for special youngsters ranging from the age 6 to 20. All students are assessed based on their abilities and they are allowed to take subjects that are not offered in ordinary schools.**_

_**As a chosen candidate for the Scholarship Programme, we offer you a chance to enter JIS for free. The school fees are free of charge and so is the boarding. As a scholarship student, the only worry you would have is your academic performance. You need to be in the ten top percent of the level in order to maintain your Scholarship student status. Other than that, you do not need to worry about the school fees. The Scholarship Programme intend to bring gifted students from less privileged families into JIS to offer them a chance of a certificate from JIS which is recognised worldwide.**_

_**Please reply as soon as soon as possible through the school website and we hope that you would accept this rare chance of a shot in JIS. Thank you.**_

The letter ended there. Kogoro and Ran were whispering to each other, shocked from the sudden stroke of luck that Conan had received. They were already shouting at Conan to accept the proposal in order to get into a better school. Conan, however, was staring at the paper with eyes wide as saucers. A rush of conflicting emotions sped through him, making him giddy. Anger, sadness, relief and resolve. This was the chance he was looking for. He had made a promise. A promise to bring them down. If they were on the were so eager to meet their destruction, he could only give it to them.

"Ding…Dong…"

The bell sounded, interrupting everyone from their chain of thoughts. Ran stood and went over to the door and pulled it open.

"CONAN!"

An extremely noisy and bashful Detective Boys rushed in. They were all screaming in delight, totally incomprehensible. The stun trio watched the kids jump up and down in their obvious glee, waiting for the kids to lose their uncontrollable hype.

"Conan!" shouted Genta, "Did you get it?"

"Get what?" Conan asked dumbly, too confused by the current events.

"This!" the three shouted together and they each pulled out a letter from nowhere. They thrust it into the air and screamed, "We got into the school!"

"_Nani!_" Conan shouted, jumping to his feet. He ran over the cheering boys and grabbed their letters away from them. All the letters were similar to Conan's, only the name is different.

Conan's hands began to shake, which went unnoticed by the overly-delighted Detective Boys and the two very shocked Mouri. How is this possible? He had worked so hard to keep them away from the death-like attention of Gin and Vodka. But why are they chosen as well? Is it because the Detective Boys, which is now very popular, had attracted their attention as a whole? So they are not just interested in Conan but all of them as well? Why? What have they shown that to catch their attention?

"Are…are you guys going to accept the offer?" Conan asked quietly.

"Of course!" they chorused, "Who wouldn't? We already give the school our confirmation!"

Conan gritted his teeth. He was hoping that he could join the school alone without anyone to worry about there. But now with the Detective Boys attending the school, he had to keep an eye on them as well. And now, he can't refuse as well. If he didn't go, who knows what would happen to them. They have a tendency to run into troubles all the time.

"Are you going to accept Conan-kun?" asked Ran, "They are going so you won't be lonely there."

"But…." Conan began helplessly. There were so many reasons why he wanted to stay. Everyone who he wanted to protect is here. If he leaves, who is going to protect them? And… there's her. He couldn't visit her anymore if he enrol into JIS. JIS is a boarding school. He would never be able to see her until the holidays.

"_Goshinpai naku_," Ran assured him, "You will be the first one I will call if anything happens to Ai-chan.

"_Arigato Ran-neechan_," Conan thanked her gratefully. At least that was one of his problems gone.

"Well, hurry up and reply Conan!" shouted Kogoro excitedly, "The Great Mouri Kogoro's assistant is a student of Japan International School!" He laughed crazily.

Conan booted up the computer and went to the JIS's website. He clicked on the 'Scholarship programme' link and clicked on his name which was among the four names listed there. He hesitated, the mouse hovering over the 'Accept' button. If he clicked that button, he can never turn back. But he had made a promise. He won't break it.

He clicked on the button and took a deep breath. The Detective Boys went crazy again, screaming in delight. Ran was trying to shush them but to no avail while Kogoro was calling everyone who he knew to boast about Conan who was now something like a son to him.

No one noticed Conan slipping out of the house, quietly and as stealthily as a ghost.

_***Agasa's house***_

"Are you sure about this Shinichi?" Kudou Yusaku's concerned voice said, "You are might be walking into a very dangerous trap."

Conan twiddled with the phone strap on his phone and replied, "I don't think so. I have a feeling that it isn't a trap but a honest scholarship programme. Don't worry, I'll be careful."

"No, absolutely not Shin-chan!" the harassed voice of Kudou Yukiko broke in, "That is too dangerous! You are playing with fire!"

"Okaa-san, I'm going to be fine," Conan stressed again, "I'll be careful. Anyway, I am going to attend JIS, an elite school. Aren't you happy?"

The mood on the other end of the phone brightened immediately. "Yeah I am!" Yukiko cheered happily, her worries vanishing completely. "My son is going to an elite school! I am so proud!"

"I am too but be careful Shinichi," warned Yusaku, his voice still serious, "Make sure you don't poke around too much. If they catch you, it's over."

"I know," Conan said, "I don't plan on being caught."

"Alright then, we'll send some money over for your expenditure when you are in school. Goodbye then Shinichi, be careful," Yusaku said before ending the call.

Conan hanged up and looked at the _hakase _who was standing beside him, looking at him worriedly.

"I'll be fine _hakase_," Conan reassured him, "But now the focus at hand is the safety of Ran and everyone else here. Can you keep an eye out? If anything happens, call me immediately. I will return."

"I will do that but Shinichi," Agasa said, "will you be fine there? You have to take care of the kids and yourself. And inside a school that might be monitored by the Organization, it will be very dangerous."

"I'll be fine _hakase,_" repeated Conan, tired from comforting and assuring people, "I need to do this. I made a promise. I am not breaking it."

Agasa didn't press him any longer. Conan was ready for the incoming challenges and he was never going to back away from them. He was Shinichi. Shinichi is a person that will never give up, no matter what.

_***in some other building***_

"He accepted? So did the others? That's good. Alright then, keep an eye on all of them when they are in school. I want daily reports."

Gin ended the call and grinned evilly at Vodka who was waiting for him. The room lights weren't lit, making Gin's lighted cigarette the only source of light in the room . "They accepted," Gin announced.

"Why did you chose three other brats as well?" Vodka asked, "I thought you only wanted the brat, Edogawa Conan."

"They are brave. Bravery is good," Gin replied lazily, "Anyway, they are friends with our main focus. The Boss wants them to tag along with the kid so he wouldn't feel so left out in the new school. It's all for the kid."

Gin laughed and his laughter rang throughout the room, making Vodka squirm uncomfortably in his seat.

"The real tests starting real soon," Gin said as he took the cigarette butt from his lips, "Real soon."

He extinguished the cigarette butt, pressing it down firmly on the ashtray, leaving them in complete darkness.

_**~(~)~**_

_**FIN**_

**Conan and the gang is off to JIS! The life in a new school will start soon and again it is filled with action and mysteries! The Black Organization has no idea about Conan's true identity and Conan do not know their true intentions! What will happen? Life in the new school will be in the next story, the sequel of Marked! I am going to take a break before starting on the next sequel, 'Secrets: Part 2 of Impending Doom' would be out by next week so please keep an eye out! For those who had read and reviewed this story, Thank You very much! I hope that you will continue to read the next part of Impending Doom. ****Next is the epilogue, the finale.**__

_**Translation:**_

_**Aniki- Partner, commonly used by Vodka when addressing Gin.  
>Nanatsu no Ko- A Japanese children song- Seven children. It is also said to be the Boss's phone number.<br>Nani- What?  
>Goshinpai Naku- Don't worry. *Not sure about this. If I'm wrong please tell me. Thanks. :)*<br>Arigatou- Thank You  
>hakase- Professor. Thats what Agasa is usually called. <strong>_


	14. Epilogue

_**~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~**_

_**Epilogue **_

_***Mouri's home***_

"Where is Conan?" shouted Ran. It was the day that Conan would be heading to JIS for the first time and he had disappeared. JIS was in Sapporo and the flight to Sapporo was that Conan would be taking with the rest of Detective Boys was in an hour's time.

"Damn that kid," cursed Kogoro. He had rented a van so he could collect everyone who wanted to say goodbye to Conan and the main attraction was nowhere to be seen.

"Let's just go to the airport Ran," Kogoro said, fed up with waiting. "He'll be there I bet, sooner or later. Probably he went out to play in the arcades one last time before intense studying."

Ran bit her lower lip in worry but nonetheless followed her father down the stairs and into the van parked at the side of the street. Kogoro heaved the heavy luggage into the van and they both took off to pick up the people who wished to follow them to the airport.

_***Haido Central Hospital***_

Conan stared into the peaceful face of Haibara. She hadn't moved once. She looked the same as ever, completely still, her face slack and emotions unseen. It had been over two weeks since she fell into a coma. She still haven't woke up. As though she didn't want to wake up. It was like she was waiting for someone and had no will to wake up because she didn't want to face the world until that certain person comes.

Conan reached and brushed a stray hair back into place with his fingertips and pulled back, stroking her cheek gently. His hands fell back to his side as his throat tightened painfully. He was going to be gone for three months, before he could finally return for the winter break. Before he could see her again. He gulped down the lump in his throat and sighed. He needed to go. Steeling himself and hardening his eyes, he turned abruptly and walked to the door. He pulled open the door and paused. He turned to face Haibara, trying to prolong the moment which would be his last until three months later. He let go of a breath waveringly.

He turned, unable to look at her any longer. He walked out and shut the door behind him. He walked off, his mind in his own little world, ignoring the stares that he was receiving. He was dressed in the JIS uniform after all. Dressed smartly in a white shirt, a dark blue silk tie, a pair of a dark blue trousers and a dark blue blazer with the crest of JIS on his left breast pocket, he was a handsome sight. He attracted many envious and shocked stares from many people. The school semester was still on so to see a JIS student walking through the streets of Beika is an unusual sight.

Conan walked out of the hospital and hailed a taxi. He needed to be at the airport soon. He boarded the taxi and told the driver his destination. The taxi drove off and joined the traffic.

Conan stared out of the window, taking in the familiar sights of Beika. He had lived here his entire seventeen years. The familiar buildings flashed past and the morning sun behind those buildings were all so familiar to him. The feeling of home was so strong now. He will not see them again, at least for quite some time. He will never see the sunrise here in Beika at Sapporo. It would never be the same.

And… There was something else. The people, the faces that Conan had came to adore in Beika- he won't see them in Sapporo. And he won't be able to see her there. He won't be able to see both of them there. He remembered his promise and he would do whatever it takes to keep it.

The buildings continue to pass by. Conan kept staring out of the window, never wanting to lose sight of them. He looked to the sky and smiled sadly at the sun.

"Wait for me…"he whispered, "I will be back. And you will never need to live like this anymore."

_**~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~**_


End file.
